Mapping Wild Rusland

Preserving priority habitats on a landscape-wide scale.

Client: Rusland Horizons
Date: 2018
Services: Digital Mapping, Data Analysis

After the introduction of the government’s ‘Biodiversity 2020’ strategy, there has been a national emphasis on improving the quality and extent of priority habitats on a larger, landscape-wide scale.

Rusland Horizons asked CBDC for assistance with a particularly complex GIS (Geographic Information System) digital mapping project, ‘Mapping Wild Rusland,’ which aimed to develop an approach to creating a GIS database that could be emulated throughout the rest of the county. We used a variety of habitat information, such ase Phase 1 Habitat data and Farm Environment Plans, to create a GIS database that would indicate the extent of UK priority habitats in the Rusland Horizons project area. The data analysis identified parts of the landscape that could not be attributed to a current habitat definition and will require further investigation.

The data and maps we created can now be used by local communities to inform discussions and landscape management decisions. This project helped demonstrate the Lake District National Park’s and Cumbria Local Nature Partnership’s commitment to a landscape-scale approach, and CBDC’s approach to GIS mapping can now be emulated across Cumbria.

Two stills of interactive maps that we produced for Rusland Horizons, depicting Habitat Types (Above) and Farm Environment Plan Habitat Features (Below). Explore the live, interactive maps here via our Project Archives section.