Leeds-headquartered technology consultancy plans to restore the Yorkshire Dales

Today, the global technology and engineering consultancy BJSS has announced an ambitious programme to preserve and restore over 125 acres of land in the Yorkshire Dales.

With its recent initiative, BJSS has assured the long-term protection of the site and, alongside local farmers and conservation charities, is looking at ways to further enrich the land with plans to extend the SSSI site and reintroduce native broadleaf trees to the surrounding area.

Mark Robison, board director at BJSS, says: “As a successful and growing technology company that champions sustainability through our work and the solutions we offer, we believe that we have an urgent responsibility to protect the natural environment we all benefit from as we continue to expand our operations.

“This restoration programme will be pivotal in helping us achieve our wider net-zero aspirations.”

Britain’s wildflower meadows are rapidly declining, with around 95% disappearing over the last 50 years. Hay meadows are among the most biodiversity-rich terrestrial ecosystems, but modern life has made these green spaces a rarity. And as part of this initiative, BJSS employees are expressing their keenness to get involved in the restoration process.

Jason Reynolds, owner of Simply Ecology Limited, who is a long-term partner to the BJSS team and is playing an integral role in restoring the hay meadow, says: “The importance of businesses restoring green space and getting their staff involved in such initiatives is vital.

“Businesses have a responsibility not just to protect and restore the natural environment, but to educate, inform, and support their employees in making an equally important contribution to protecting our natural world.”

Protecting the land isn’t all BJSS intends to do. The company also plans to enrich the environment in several ways, including creating a habitat that attracts local wildlife, such as the treasured red squirrel that, without conversation management, could become extinct in England in approximately ten years.

Mark added: “Our digital solutions and sustainable delivery lifecycle help customers significantly reduce the carbon impact of the systems we replace. But we are also looking to this restoration programme to help influence employees, suppliers, customers, and communities.

“We want to encourage these groups to get involved in supporting environmental protection and improvement.”