Westcountry

The tranquility of the South West countryside could all but disappear within the next 70 years, figures warn.

Maps produced by the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) show that the region is being disturbed by noise and visual intrusion at a quicker rate than any other part of the country.

The South West was once the least disturbed by noise and visual intrusion in the 1960s with only 15 per cent of its area affected, but now over 40 per cent is blighted, the CPRE said.

According to the maps, the region has lost another 1,170 square miles to disturbance from urban intrusion since the early 1990s - an area larger than the county of Dorset.

And at current rates of loss much of the remaining 60 per cent of the region's countryside could be blighted in just 70 years, the CPRE found.

The charity attributed the urban invasion to a growing number of roads, railways, airports and wind farms.

CPRE chief executive Shaun Spiers said: "Countryside which is undisturbed by noise and development is vital for our quality of life and well-being.

"These maps show what the future may hold if we don't sufficiently value our wonderful rural landscapes.

"As the shadow of intrusion stretches further and wider, the peace and quiet we need is harder to find."

The South West does retain some important reserves of undisturbed countryside with large areas of north Devon and west Somerset relatively unfragmented, the CPRE said.

Nationally, since the early 1990s 320 square miles of countryside has been overshadowed by urban intrusion every year - or the area of Greater London every two years.

At this rate much of the remaining 50 per cent of the undisturbed countryside in England could be blighted in just 80 years, the CPRE warned.

Mr Spiers added: "The findings of this research are a wake-up call for the government.

"It must strengthen policy to protect the remaining areas of undisturbed land and protect it for future generations."

The CPRE is calling on the government to introduce policies which will protect the countryside for future generations.

These include setting more ambitious targets for recycling brownfield land, promoting public transport as an attractive alternative to the car and halting current airport expansion plans.

Mr Spiers concluded: "The countryside is one of our greatest national assets. I am sure that the government wants to protect it - but these maps show the current pace of development is seriously eroding our countryside.

"The impact of development spreads way beyond its immediate footprint. More must be done to protect what is left from further fragmentation.

"The government must act across the board to demonstrate that it takes the future of the countryside seriously. Unless it does so, for children alive today much of our remaining undisturbed countryside will become a distant memory in their lifetimes."