Conservation Issues
The proximity of the Peak to major conurbations (an estimated 20 million people live within an hour's drive) poses unique challenges to managing the area. The Peak District National Park Authority and the National Trust, with other landowners, attempt to balance keeping the upland landscape accessible to visitors for recreation, whilst protecting it from intensive farming, erosion and pressure from visitors themselves. An inevitable tension exists between the needs of the 38,000 residents of the Peak District National Park, the many millions of people who visit it annually, and the conservation requirements of the area.
The uneven distribution of visitors creates further stresses. Dovedale alone receives an estimated two million visitors annually; other highly visited areas include Bakewell, Castleton and the Hope Valley, Chatsworth, Hartington and the reservoirs of the Upper Derwent Valley. Over 60% of visits are concentrated in the period May–September, with Sunday being the busiest day.
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