Beavers will be released into the wild in England under licence for the first time, the government said today.
The dam-making rodents had been extinct in this country since the 16th century after they were hunted for their meat, fur and scent glands.
Now a licensing system has been launched to allow the release of beavers into the countryside to roam freely.
Bringing back beavers will boost nature, supporters say, as they build dams which create ponds which hold back water, helping to prevent flooding and at the same time providing habitats for other wildlife.
Farmers and landowners on whose land the beavers colonise will receive support, the government said.
Beavers, who are herbivores, eating bark, grass, plants, trees and leaves were given legal protection in 2022 in England.
They have also been introduced to a large number of fenced wetland and river sites where they are kept in enclosures – such as in Enfield, north London, the home of animals known locally as Justin and Sigourney Beaver.
Conservationists have long called for licensed wild returns to the wider English countryside, to boost wildlife in the UK – considered one of the most nature-depleted countries on Earth – and deliver benefits to people.
Beavers will be released into the wild in England under licence for the first time, the government said today
Bringing back beavers will boost nature, supporters say, as they build dams which create ponds which hold back water, helping to prevent flooding and at the same time providing habitats for other wildlife
Evidence, including from a five-year trial of beavers living wild on the River Otter in Devon, shows the dams, ponds and wetlands they create boost a host of other wildlife, from threatened water voles to dragonflies.
They also slow the flow of water, reducing the risk of flooding downstream, and can store water in the landscape during drought, as well as purifying polluted river systems, removing sediment and storing carbon.
But there have been concerns about the impact of beavers flooding roads, properties and farmland, with National Farmers’ Union (NFU) president Tom Bradshaw calling for farmers to be allowed to use ‘lethal control’ of the animals if they ‘end up in the wrong place’.
The Environment Department (Defra) said the return of beavers would be carefully managed to avoid impacts on food production and infrastructure.
Well-managed beaver releases would be allowed at a ‘measured pace’, in high-benefit, low-risk projects, where communities are helped to adapt to living with beavers.
Projects will need to have a 10-year plan in place to support the return of beavers into a landscape, officials said.
The approach allows for dealing with negative impacts, from removing newly built dams to, ‘as a last resort’, trapping and relocating or lethally controlling the animals under licence.
Defra also confirmed that all existing wild beaver populations, found in areas such as Cornwall, Dorset, Somerset and Kent, will be allowed to remain and expand naturally – in addition to the River Otter beavers who were given the right to stay in their south Devon home in 2020.
The dam-making rodents had been extinct in this country since the 16th century after they were hunted for their meat, fur and scent glands
Evidence, including from a five-year trial of beavers living wild on the River Otter in Devon, shows the dams, ponds and wetlands they create boost a host of other wildlife, from threatened water voles to dragonflies
These wild populations will continue to be managed ‘proactively’ by their local beaver management groups, officials said.
Nature Minister Mary Creagh said: ‘Beavers are cherished creatures who bring so many benefits for people and our precious natural environment.
‘Reintroducing beavers to the wild is a critical milestone for this Government’s plan to protect and restore our natural world.’
Natural England’s chairman Tony Juniper said: ‘This announcement is a very significant step in the long road for nature’s recovery in England, because of the real benefits that beavers create in the habitats they occupy and shape.’
Beavers are described as ‘ecosystem engineers’, he said, due to their impact on the water system, which creates habitats for water voles, water shrews, birds such as snipe and herons and a vast array of insects.
‘This is the massive multiplier effect that comes from the reintroduction of these animals, which have been missing for 400 years.
‘Putting them back, we’ll be able to put back lots of more wildlife besides,’ he said.
New release schemes would be required to establish and implement strong management plans to maximise benefits while minimising or avoiding unwanted impacts, he added.
The first new release of wild beavers is expected to take place in Purbeck Heaths, a protected landscape spanning more than 8,000 acres which was designated as the UK’s first ‘super’ nature reserve in 2020, under a licence granted to the National Trust
The first new release of wild beavers is expected to take place in Purbeck Heaths, a protected landscape spanning more than 8,000 acres which was designated as the UK’s first ‘super’ nature reserve in 2020, under a licence granted to the National Trust.
The trust’s director general, Hilary McGrady, described the announcement as ‘fantastic news’, and said the licensing process would lead to well-chosen sites, minimise disruption to other landowners and ensure local communities were fully consulted and involved in releases.
‘Beavers are unparalleled in their ability to restore landscapes, create wetlands that manage flood risk, improve our water quality, and bring back wildlife,’ she added.
The NFU’s deputy president, David Exwood, said that in the right location beavers could provide ‘certain benefits’, but raised concerns about beavers causing flooded fields, feeding on crops such as maize and felling trees including cricket bat willows, and the costs of managing them.
‘The Government must put in place a longer-term vision and management plan for beavers, before any further wild releases are considered,’ he urged.
He also called for agricultural impact assessments for wild release projects.
Rob Stoneman, from The Wildlife Trusts – which have long advocated for wild reintroductions – said the beavers would provide benefits at ‘almost no cost to society’.
Applicants for further wild release licences will need to first submit an expression of interest to Natural England, with the deadline for the first round of applications on May 2 2025.
Scotland has allowed the licensed release of beavers into the wild since 2009 where they have flourished.
In 2021, 87 wild beavers were culled in Tayside after protests from farmers they were damaging crops. The previous year 120 were culled.
