Restore Buys Emblehope Moor for £8.5m to Rewild

Restore, a nature restoration company, has purchased 7,500-acre Emblehope Moor in Northumberland for £8.5 million. The site is now the largest contiguous rewilding site under single ownership in England.

The aim is to bring back species like golden eagles, curlews, black grouse, and beavers. The moor has previously been used for grouse shooting, sheep farming, and as a dog-training ground. The project still needs to raise £4 million to fund its full 20-year scheme.

A unique part of the plan is its eventual ownership model. After delivering biodiversity and financial returns, and repaying a £4.5 million loan from Triodos Bank, Restore will hand the site over to local community or charitable ownership.

"We want to prove that the bank is paid back, investors get their two-times return but we don’t need to become the next for ever laird," said Benedict Macdonald, founder and director of Restore. He described the model as both capitalist and community-focused, aimed at taking "the greed out of it."

The State of the Land

Emblehope is a Site of Special Scientific Interest. It already supports raptors like merlin and prospecting golden eagles. Its streams have trout and salmon, and the area is home to red squirrels and pine martens.

Restore's first tasks are hydrological. A hidden network of land drains has parched the peat moorland. Restoring it could store an additional 100,000 cubic metres of water. "It’s going to be a massive exercise to identify the exits of water from the land," Macdonald said.

Future plans involve using beavers to help hold back water. Macdonald noted that beavers can thrive even on treeless moors, having seen them make dams from heather in Norway.

Managing Fire Risk and Habitat

A more immediate task is reducing fire risk. Macdonald is alarmed by dry "thatch" beneath moorland grass. The priority is to introduce Exmoor ponies, which will eat down this grassy layer.

This grazing will also help species like curlew. Currently, the grass is too thick for curlew chicks to survive and find food. Diversifying grazing animals will open up the habitat.

Another major task is removing swaths of non-native sitka spruce. These dense plantations harbour little life and raise predation levels, as goshawks use them for cover. Their removal will affect some species, like long-eared owls and crossbills, but these birds remain in the vast neighbouring Kielder Forest.

The challenge, according to Macdonald, are the "little shitkas", baby sitka trees that pop up from wind-blown seed. The proposed solution is to plant broadleaved screens around the site's edge to block the seed.

The Lynx Question and Local Staff

While promotional videos have shown lynx, Restore has no funded plans to reintroduce the predator. Macdonald said the company has "no wish to be in the reintroduction party," though he conceded the economic argument for lynx, via tourism, is compelling. A survey suggests 72% of local people favour reintroduction, but many sheep farmers are vehemently opposed.

Despite its rewilding goals, Restore is retaining the estate's existing farmer and gamekeeper. Macdonald expressed surprise that people are surprised by this decision. He said the farmer is a "real student" of the area's grazing history, and the gamekeeper has been looking after some of Britain's highest densities of birds of prey.

Funding the Transformation

Restore will fund the project through multiple income streams. These include conventional forestry and farming, future education and eco-tourism, and government environmental payments. However, most income is expected to come from natural capital payments.

These payments include carbon credits for restored peat bog and the sale of "30x30 Restore units." Corporations would pay for the restoration of 30-metre by 30-metre habitat patches. Macdonald framed it as corporate sponsorship for a major natural event.

The project is part of a broader movement in Northumberland, described by environmentalist Ben Goldsmith as "Britain’s Yellowstone." This includes the nearby Rothbury estate, which wildlife trusts are trying to buy, and other private estates accelerating nature restoration.