EP5

Environment Policy 5 - Mitigation against damage to or loss of habitats

development which would erode the separation and detract from the openness between the settlements is unlikely to be supported.

Douglas, Union Mills and Strang (see Maps 3, 4 and 8)

Natural Environment Proposal 5 (Green Gap)
Between the settlements of and Douglas, Union Mills and Strang, development which would erode the separation and detract from the openness between the settlements is unlikely to be supported.

The Upland Environment

The Manx Uplands are an iconic part of our landscape and heritage. Reference to the 'sweet mountain air' and 'green hills and rocks' are enshrined in our national anthem and the colours of the heather and gorse are woven into the very fabric of Manx tartan. The hills are a place of great beauty, yet for some they are also a place to work and for others a place to exercise or simply enjoy open space. Our Uplands are also home to plants and animals that whilst familiar to us, are rare and important in a global and European context. Furthermore, the uplands are a rich repository of cultural and archaeological remains, which are sensitive to change and can easily be damaged by inappropriate development.

Production of food is an important and obvious function of hill land. But surprisingly, the Manx hills provide everyday functions that most people take for granted. Peatlands, which cover most of our hills reduce the impacts of climate change by locking up carbon dioxide, collect and filter our drinking water and slow the passage of rainfall into streams and rivers, thus reducing downstream flood risk.

These multiple uses are of great benefit to the economy of the Isle of Man and the well-being of its people. It is important that the hills continue to provide these benefits long into the future.

Ensuring sustainable management of such a wide range of uses to the satisfaction of all interested parties whilst retaining functions essential to the well-being of the Isle of Man is of paramount importance.

The Isle of Man Government is the owner and landlord for the majority of the Uplands in the East region and is therefore in a position to implement policy which will deliver the optimum range of ecosystem services.

Appropriate and positive Upland management such as controlled rotational burning/cutting of heather and low intensity grazing helps to reduce the fuel load of the hill, provides firebreaks and reduces the risk of unplanned wildfires that further protects the biodiversity of the site, but also the vast amounts of carbon locked away in the peat soils. The majority of this work is carried out by The Department of Environment, Food & Agriculture's grazing and shooting tenants.

The Manx Uplands are critically important from a habitat and biodiversity perspective. The hills in the East support a significant number of breeding hen harriers; however, other native Upland breeding birds such as curlew and red grouse have suffered severe declines in recent decades and as such are of high conservation concern.

Strict control of access and recreational activity on vulnerable soils should be implemented to reduce soil erosion and subsequent carbon loss.

Curlew and hen harriers are recognised as an internationally important species, while (within the EU) upland heather moorland is designated as a priority habitat. In order to ensure protection and positive management of the Uplands, the following proposal is appropriate:

Environment Proposal 6
Uses of the Uplands that contribute to the management and preservation of this distinctive environment will be supported.

Dark Skies

On the Isle of Man, 26 Dark Sky Discovery Sites have been identified, of which nine are located in the East. They are classified as Milky Way Sites meaning that at these sites the Milky Way is visible to the naked eye. The sites are accessible and light pollution is limited. The following Dark Sky Discovery Sites are located within the East:

• Port Soderick Upper Car Park
• Port Soderick Brooghs, Little Ness Car Park
• Mount Murray Golf Club
• Onchan Park
• West Baldwin Reservoir Car Park
• Clypse Kerrowdhoo Reservoir Car Park
• Conrhenny Car Park
• Ballanette Nature Reserve
• Axnfell Plantation

Natural Environment Proposal 7
Proposals for development in the vicinity of Dark Sky Discovery Sites are to have minimal outdoor lighting and be encouraged to have a design response which is non-intrusive into the darkness of night. Baffling and directionality of lighting must be sensitive to contain any necessary lighting within a subject site only.

Watercourses and Wetlands

The collection of hills in the East has produced a network of mountain streams which gradually join and widen to become the rivers flowing out into Douglas Bay, Port Groudle and Laxey Bay. Several of these rivers form the natural boundaries between the Eastern Parishes.

A non-exhaustive list of streams and rivers in the East includes:

• Crammag River
• Injebreck River
• Creg-y-Cowin River
• West Baldwin River
• Awin Ny Darragh
• Baldwin River
• River Glass