99 - Black Mountains and Golden Valley : Analysis: Landscape Attributes & Opportunities

Analysis supporting Statements of Environmental Opportunity

The following analysis section focuses on the landscape attributes and opportunities for this NCA.

Further analysis on ecosytem services for this NCA is contained in the Analysis: Ecosytem Services section.

Landscape attributes

The Black Mountains and Golden Valley NCA is characterised by upland and steep- sided fertile valleys, and a transition from lowland hills in the east to upland in the west.

Justification for selection:

• A transition landscape from lowland to upland.
• The Golden Valley is the widest of the valleys in the NCA and was carved out by glacial action.
• The valleys have a north-west to south-east orientation.
• Elevation ranges from 65 m to 700 m.
• There are extensive views across and beyond the NCA.
• The Black Mountains support extensive areas of moorland and upland heath. The highest land on the plateau ridges has wet heath and bog with small, flushed areas. Blanket mire lies on the gentler slopes.
• The Black Mountains form a distinctive skyline visible from the Malvern Hills and other high ground to the east and south.

An upland landscape characterised by a tableland of Old Red Sandstone dating from the Silurian to the Devonian periods incised by many valleys and watercourses.

Justification for selection:

• A landscape formed by Old Red Sandstone rocks laid down at the end of the Silurian and throughout the Devonian periods, which was later pushed up to create a high tableland as tectonic plates collided.
• The river valleys are parallel following the original regional trend on the uplifted surface upon which the drainage developed. The height of the land reflects the varying hardness of the underlying ‘Old Red Sandstone’ rock.
• With the exception of the Dore Valley, the rivers have carved out the deep-sided valleys creating a trellis-like pattern of drainage.
• Glaciation has had a pronounced impact on the area, carving out the wide Dore Valley and leaving moraines and hummocks.
• The strong pattern of ridges and valleys follow a north-west to south-east orientation. Golden Valley is the widest and is thought to have been carved out by glacial action. The downwash from the valley sides has created very fertile land.
• The high ridge between the Vale of Ewyas in Wales and the Olchon Valley has very steep slopes and outcrops of conglomerate beds. Many of the downslopes are covered with downwash deposits with rilling and gullying creating fluted sides to the valley.

There are numerous rivers and streams in the NCA. They are fast flowing and are important wildlife corridors.

Justification for selection:

• The River Dore and the River Monnow flow from Wales in the north, in a south-easterly direction through the NCA following the line of the deep valleys and passing into the South Herefordshire and Over Severn NCA.
• The rivers flow into the River Wye – a Special Area of Conservation – and potentially impact on the quality of water and nature conservation interests downstream
• The River Monnow forms the southern boundary of the NCA, and the boundary between England and Wales, and the River Dore flows southwards through the Golden Valley to join the Monnow at Monmouth Cap.
• The main brooks – the Dulas, Escley and Olchon – are all fast flowing streams over rocky substrates, often with good fringes of woodland.
• The total area of nitrate vulnerable zone is 5,077 ha, which is 20 per cent of the NCA.
• There is high variation in river flow rates after heavy rain.
• High rainfall, often steep topography and upland areas result in a variety of semi-natural habitats and conditions with bogs, streams, brooks and rivers providing essential connections and a common component. The availability and flow of water is important in maintaining these habitats, controlling the erosion of soils, flooding and public water supply.

Woodland is predominantly found on the slopes of the eastern and northern hills and is a defining element of the landscape.

Justification for selection:

• The NCA contains 3,290 ha of woodland (13 per cent of the total area), of which 1,715 ha is ancient semi-natural woodland. This contributes strongly to the character of the area.
• The priority habitat ‘broadleaved mixed and yew woodland (broad habitat)’ is identified as covering 1,588 ha of the NCA.
• Approximately 50 per cent of the woodland is on ancient woodland sites. Many have been modified by conifer or broadleaved planting. About half the ancient woodland is thought to be relatively unmodified native tree cover.
• Ancient woodlands along the ridge east of the Golden Valley are thought to be fragmented remnants of the former ancient Forest of Trevil. Many small alder woods are found on the slopes of the Olchon, Escley and Dulas brooks. Chanstone Wood is the only woodland SSSI.
• In the north of the area, along Dulas Brook and tributaries of the River Dore, are several steep-sided dingles which support rich ash-oak woodlands, as at Cusop Dingle and Bach Dingle.
• Woodland is predominantly found on the slopes of the eastern and northern hills, including within the ancient parkland and wood pasture at Moccas Park, and is mostly broadleaved, but with some blocks of mixed and coniferous plantations.
• Dead wood, in particular ancient oaks are a feature of Moccas Park and are an important biodiversity resource in parkland and wood pasture as well as in semi-natural woodlands. It provides habitat for fungi, lichen and invertebrates, and is valuable for nutrient cycling and soil formation.

The lower lying land is predominantly managed as pasture in small- to medium- size fields generally bounded by low hedgerows.

Justification for selection:

• Irregular pasture fields, commonly with mature hedgerow oaks and overgrown hedgerows.
• Hedgerows thin out at the ridge tops where a more regular pattern and larger fields are apparent.
• Removal and lack of appropriate management of hedgerows and loss of hedgerow trees and run-off has affected river margins, weakening landscape character.

The agriculture landcover varies with rough grazing on the higher land to the west through low-to moderate-intensity pastoral land use to intensive arable cultivation on the floor of the Golden Valley.

Justification for selection:

• Grass and uncropped land covers 78 per cent of the total agricultural area. Farm holdings are predominately grazing livestock farms with a small amount of dairy. There is a long history of livestock farming in this area and food provision is an important ecosystem service provided.
• The fertile soils of the Golden Valley make this area important for arable farming; 11 per cent of holdings are predominately arable or horticulture businesses and arable crops (predominantly cereals) account for 19 per cent of the agricultural area.
• Many of the farms have rough grazing and inappropriate stocking levels and uncontrolled burning can lead to deterioration of the habitats.
• Pasture improvement and arable intensification has caused the loss of meadow and boundary features and threatens areas of ridge and furrow, buried archaeology and other historic earthworks.

The landscape consists of unimproved neutral grassland – a feature of the western edge of the NCA – contrasting with the open acidic grasslands found on the hills that gives rise to a characteristic upland- edge landscape with densely hedged field systems.

Justification for selection:

• The uplands of the Black Mountains carry large tracts of unimproved acidic grassland, derived from heathland by grazing, which grades into a mosaic of moorland and shrub heath.
• Small areas of rich calcareous grassland are confined to rock outcrops and spring lines at Red Darren and Black Darren.
• The Black Mountains support extensive areas of moorland and upland heath. The highest land on the plateau ridges has wet heath and bog with small, flushed areas.
• Blanket bog lies on the gentler slopes and covers 1,158 ha (4 per cent) of the NCA. Lowland heath can be found on the lower slopes and valley sides and covers 449 ha (4 per cent) of the NCA.
• The grassland resource of the NCA is complemented by the network of road verges and the extent of ancient hedgerows surviving alongside many roads.
• Caerion Meadow SSSI is a fine example of an MG5 hay meadow with plants such as globeflower, eyebright, bistort, lady’s mantle and wood bitter-vetch.
• Several grassland species occur near the edge of their natural range in this area. Globeflower is near its southerly limit in Britain and wood bitter-vetch extends, from its core area in Wales, eastward into Herefordshire.
• Small wet flushes and rush pastures are a feature of some grasslands and, although not particularly rich botanically, they add diversity to the grassland mosaic and have at least local significance for invertebrates.
• Anthills, with their distinctive plant communities, are a feature of several commons. At Little Mountain the margins of a small pool provide habitat for pillwort, a nationally scarce plant.

There is much evidence of Neolithic, bronze-age and iron- age activity and a long history of a border landscape.

Justification for selection:

• Extensive evidence for Neolithic and bronze-age activity, including the megaliths of Arthur’s Stone.
• Iron-age hill forts (as at Poston and Pentwyn) provided foci for valley communities. The Romano-British period saw more settlement around the Roman road along the Golden Valley.
• Villages formed in the Golden Valley around Norman castles (and also the pre-Conquest castle at Ewyas Harold) and developed from late 11th to 13th century (for example, Longtown).
• The NCA has a long history as a frontier landscape; with Welsh place names a strong element and Offa’s Dyke forming the boundary of the Saxon kingdom of Mercia.
• From the late 11th into the 12th century, and as a result of the Norman conquest, the border landscape was reinforced resulting is a high concentration of earthen motte and bailey castles; the large castle at Hay-on-Wye forming, with the Black Mountains, a defensive barrier to the west.
• The Cistercian abbey at Abbey Dore (founded in 1147) was a major influence on settlement and agricultural development in the area and it has become a popular tourist destination.
• Smaller manor houses and gentry houses are a feature of the area, for example Wellbrook Manor at Peterchurch.
• There are also country houses together with their landscaped gardens, parkland and wider settings, notably Moccas Park with its ancient oak trees.

A dispersed settlement pattern of medieval origins.

Justification for selection:

• Unenclosed and unoccupied upland areas.
• Historical field patterns from the medieval period and Moccas Park, a fine example of historic parkland and wood pasture.
• Enclosed farmland, hedgerows, isolated farmsteads, hamlets, villages and small settlements.
• Along the Golden Valley, there are small villages with a rather dispersed settlement pattern around them, for example at Ewyas Harold and Longtown. With more recent development and the farmsteads on the valley sides, the Golden Valley has the impression of being frequently settled.
• As far west as the lower slopes of the Olchon Valley there are frequent farms and hamlets on the valley sides and bottoms and larger settlements at river crossings. Locally the pattern changes to more closely grouped clusters where there has been settlement on former commons.
• The main settlements in the area are; Hay-on-Wye, Hinton, Ewyas Harold, Longtown, Peterchurch and Abbey Dore.
• The older buildings and churches are mainly built of red sandstone, often of a strikingly deep colour, as at Abbey Dore. Grey Silurian limestone or a range of intermediate coloured sandstones have also been used.
• Traditionally, stone slates were used for roofing but these have now largely been replaced by Welsh slate.
• In the west, the farmhouses and cottages within hamlets are often low, of rubble construction and sometimes whitewashed, giving them a Welsh appearance.
• Nineteenth- and early 20th-century buildings in the east, particularly along the Golden Valley, are mainly of brick. Some of the larger, older houses have the typical foursquare appearance and hipped roof of Herefordshire gentry houses and locally there are timber-framed buildings.

A tranquil landscape much valued for its recreational opportunities, wildlife, remote uplands and intimate lowlands.

Justification for selection:

• Eight per cent of the NCA (2,088 ha) is classified as being publicly accessible. Four per cent (1,087 ha) of this is classified as common land and 6 per cent (1,589 ha) is open access land.
• There are 470 km of public rights of way at a density of 1.8 km per km2.
• Based on the CPRE map of tranquillity (2006) the most tranquil area lies on the western boundary of the NCA on the hills surrounding Hay Bluff.
• Walking in the tranquil upland area is the primary recreational activity; other activities include cycling, horse riding and running and fishing in the Golden Valley and enjoying the area’s natural beauty and history.
• Offa’s Dyke Path National Trail.

Landscape opportunities

• Protect, manage and conserve the area’s woodland resource, looking for opportunities to link isolated woodland where appropriate. Develop access and interpretation of the woodland sites to enable people to enjoy them.
• Protect and conserve the open moorland plateau with its extensive views and its sense of tranquillity and remoteness, encouraging people to enjoy the uplands while preserving these qualities and ensuring recreation and disturbance does not cause damage to sensitive habitats and species.
• Protect, conserve and enhance semi-natural habitats including blanket bog, acid grasslands, heathland, woodland, species-rich pastures, hay meadows, improved grassland and flower-rich road verges.
• Protect habitats from further fragmentation, seeking opportunities to link habitats to ensure good condition and enhance their value for biodiversity.
• Conserve, manage and enhance the mosaic of moorland and grassland habitats, including open moorland,
• Conserve, maintain and enhance riverside pastures and meadows, encouraging extensive management to enhance habitat for breeding wading birds. Restore traditional hay meadows and other species-rich grasslands and reintroduce wetland vegetation and habitats where it has been lost along the river corridors.
• Conserve the diversity and integrity of geological and geomorphological features and enhance their interpretation, education and visual amenity value.
• Protect and conserve archaeological and historical features including prehistoric burial mounds and other heritage assets, enabling public access, understanding and enjoyment.
• Conserve and enhance traditional field and settlement patterns that contribute to sense of place by encouraging the restoration and management of hedgerows, the restoration of historical and traditional buildings and ensuring that new developments are in keeping with the historic settlement pattern and vernacular.
• Protect the fertility of the soils in the Golden Valley to ensure the ongoing viability of farming in the area. Use sustainable land management and farming methods to retain soil fertility and structure, protecting watercourses from sedimentation and excess nutrient levels
• Conserve, manage and enhance the rights-of-way and open-access networks, ensure that they are maintained and signposted and available for users of all abilities as appropriate; link them with key sites and the provision of interpretation material to enable more people to access, understand and enjoy the area. Ensure access links in with sustainable modes of transport.
• Plan and manage any new development ‘ including road schemes, industry and housing, overhead lines and renewable energy technologies, and telecommunications apparatus ‘ to ensure that the area’s tranquillity, sense of remoteness, landscape character and view are maintained and enhanced.