Improving Access in the Blackwater Valley
The Blackwater Vally has a network of paths and bridleways, but over the years these deteriorate and the surface breaks down. In the Autumn of 2008 the Blackwater Valley Countryside Partnership applied for a grant from Natural England through Defra’s Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund (ALSF) to improve some of this network
This project, worth over £70,000, was approved in November 2008. It involves upgrading two sections of the Valley’s footpath network – one in Farnham near the Shepherd & Flock roundabout, the other in Farnborough just north of North Camp station – resurfacing a stretch of bridleway by Moor Green Lakes in Yateley to allow year-round access for horse riders and cyclists and buying new machinery that will improve maintenance of the Valley’s entire path network.
The work was carried out over the winter (2008/9) and now completed will provide easier access for all users whilst allowing improved management of paths and adjacent green space, increasing their value for landscape and biodiversity.
Altogether the Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund contributed £54,000, 75% of the total cost of the project; the remaining 25% was met by matched funding from Rushmoor Borough Council, Wokingham District Council, Surrey County Council, the Blackwater Valley Countryside Trust and minerals extraction company CEMEX, with a significant contribution also being made through volunteer work.
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