The announcement by the Deputy First Minister, Huw Irranca-Davies, that the Welsh Government will extend European Protected Species status to beavers is wonderful news for this remarkable mammal, whose natural behaviour can help restore and manage rivers and freshwater habitats for the benefit of wildlife and people. Their protection will make it illegal to deliberately harm beavers or damage their habitats.

A survey by the University of Exeter in 2023 found that 88.70% of respondents in Wales supported beavers returning to the wild and 83.72% wanted them to have ‘strong legal protection’ so this move will be supported by the vast majority of people in Wales.

Through the Welsh Beaver Project, the Wildlife Trusts in Wales have been working for 20 years to successfully restore wild beavers to the Welsh landscape and this decision marks the most significant step to date in achieving that vision. The Wildlife Trusts have pioneered the reintroduction of beavers and they achieved protected status in Scotland in 2019 and England in 2022, so this welcome move aligns legislation in Wales with the rest of Britain.

The Wildlife Trusts in Wales also look forward to joining the proposed Wales Beaver Forum: we are keen to help ensure that sufficient support for landholders and beaver managers is in place to guarantee that timely management can occur so that we enjoy all the benefits beavers bring, such as improving river water quality, stabilising water flows, storing carbon and helping other wildlife, whilst avoiding any major adverse impacts to land-use or infrastructure. 

Through the Living with beavers In the Dyfi catchment project, the Welsh Beaver Project is currently developing a volunteer Beaver Management Network. This is funded by the Nature Networks Fund (round two), which is delivered by the National Lottery Heritage Fund, on behalf of the Welsh Government and in partnership with Natural Resources Wales.