Our mission is to Scale conservation and we believe that means delivering positive environmental and social impact, generating a profit as a result of what we do and not the purpose. At our core, we are a data-driven company, setting…
Langholm Moor
Reimagining a degraded upland landscape into one of the UK’s most ambitious nature restoration projects.
Spanning over 11,400 acres in the heart of the Scottish Borders, Blackburn & Hartsgarth is a vast upland estate defined by sweeping heather moorland, deep valleys, and a network of rivers that carve through the landscape. Situated between Eskdale and Liddesdale, it forms part of one of South Scotland’s most iconic and ecologically significant regions.
This is a landscape of immense natural value—but also one shaped by centuries of intensive land use. Historic management for driven grouse shooting and upland grazing has left many habitats fragmented and degraded, with peatlands damaged, biodiversity diminished, and natural processes disrupted.
Yet the scale of degradation is matched by the scale of opportunity. Today, Blackburn & Hartsgarth stands at the beginning of a long-term transformation—one that will restore ecosystems, rebuild biodiversity, and demonstrate how large landscapes can play a meaningful role in tackling the climate and nature crises.
Estate Projects & Plans
Click the link to be taken to our estate-focused community website, where you can view detailed plans, updates, and stay connected with what’s happening on the Estate.
Community Website
Woodland Restoration
Native woodland is currently scarce across the Estate, covering only a small fraction of the land despite ideal growing conditions. We are actively restoring and expanding native woodlands to enhance biodiversity and increase carbon sequestration.
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Peatland Restoration
We are placing a strong focus on peatland restoration, one of the UK's most important natural carbon stores.
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Renewable Energy
We are exploring plans for wind turbine development on the Estate to generate a substantial stream of clean energy in our fight against the climate crisis.
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Blackburn and Hartsgarth Estate has a rich history of land use
Our ambition is to transform Blackburn & Hartsgarth into one of the UK’s most significant landscape-scale conservation projects—restoring natural systems while creating long-term environmental, social, and economic value.
At its core, this vision is about rebuilding a functioning, resilient ecosystem: one where woodland, peatland, water, and wildlife are reconnected across the landscape, and where nature recovery works alongside renewable energy and regenerative land use.
Woodland Restoration
Our vision is to restore woodland at scale, expanding cover to approximately 20% of the Estate through the creation of thousands of acres of native forest, planting species such as downy birch, hazel, rowan, scots pine and sessile oak across the Estate. In collaboration with TreeStory, our expert planting partners, we have crafted a comprehensive plan for the establishment of native woodland, encompassing 1.6 million natural broadleaf trees.
Planting will focus on riparian corridors and lower slopes, creating a mosaic of habitats that supports both woodland and open-ground species. By reconnecting fragmented habitats, this work will:
- Enable species movement across the landscape
- Support bird populations including black grouse and woodland passerines
- Improve river health by:
- Increasing shade over the river channel which will improve temperature resilience
- Stabilising riverbanks and reduce erosion
- Providing increased habitat diversity as woody materials enter the watercourse
- Establish a long-term carbon sink
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Support towards flood mitigation and long-term resilience for the community
This is not about blanket tree planting – it’s about expanding existing woodland sympathetically up burns and streams whilst maintaining open moorland up on the hill, creating a dynamic landscape where nature can thrive.
Peatland Restoration
Peatlands are one of the UK’s most important natural carbon stores—yet at Blackburn & Hartsgarth, much of this system is degraded and currently emitting carbon.
Our vision is to reverse this, by working in collaboration with Caledonian Climate.
Through large-scale restoration—including rewetting, drain blocking, and erosion repair—we will return these systems to functioning blanket bog. Over time, this will:
- Turn peatlands from carbon sources into carbon sinks
- Restore hydrological function across the hills
- Support specialist plant and bird species
- Improve downstream water quality and flood resilience
Renewable Energy
We believe wind power is essential for Scaling Conservation and reducing fossil fuel reliance, we are exploring renewable energy development in partnership with Low Carbon.
This includes the potential for a large onshore wind project capable of generating clean energy for the next 50 years.
We recognise that renewable infrastructure must be carefully integrated into sensitive landscapes. Our approach is grounded in:
- Rigorous environmental assessment
- Landscape-sensitive design
- Alignment with biodiversity goals
Done well, renewable energy will not only contribute to national net-zero targets—but also provide sustained funding for nature recovery across the Estate.
Explore our story map here to discover more about the wind plans for the Estate.
Explore our interactive landscape vision map for the Estate.
We are committed to Scaling Conservation to deliver positive environmental & social impact.
At Blackburn & Hartsgarth, our vision is shaped by the scale of both the challenge and the opportunity this landscape presents. Once managed intensively, much of the Estate’s moorland, peatlands, and river systems are now degraded—releasing carbon, limiting biodiversity, and fragmenting habitats that should function as a connected whole. Yet across its 11,400 acres lies the potential to restore one of the most significant upland ecosystems in the UK.
Our vision is to transform Blackburn & Hartsgarth into a thriving, connected upland landscape—where restored peatlands act as long-term carbon stores, native woodlands return to valley floors and watercourses, and renewable wind energy is generated at scale to support the transition to a low-carbon future.
Through these efforts, we aim to achieve a range of objectives that collectively contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).
The figures to the right represent the long-term impact we aim to deliver through restoration—measured over the lifetime of the Estate.
476,000 tonnes of CO2
removed or avoided
195 km
of watercourses improved
2.5 jobs
supported across the Estate
Articles from across the Estate
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Delivering natural capital restoration at scale in Scotland isn’t a romantic idea. It’s a relentless, muddy, wind-lashed, problem-solving reality. It’s equal parts logistics and leadership, ecology and engineering, patience and persistence. And if we’re honest, it’s a craft we’re only…
Meet your Estate Manager
Charlie is the Estate Manager at Blackburn and Hartsgarth. He is responsible for delivering our vision of a resilient landscape that benefits biodiversity, climate, and the local community. Drawing on a diverse background and a deep commitment to environmental stewardship, Charlie oversees the strategic planning and day-to-day operations of the Estate to align with ambitious natural capital objectives, while working in close collaboration with a wide range of stakeholders.
Email Charlie