These areas are a main component of Lincoln's system of Green Wedges although some
are free-
standing. The term 'Casual recreation', covers a wide range of uses and activities, including angling,
walking, dog exercising, horse riding, grazing animals, bird watching, flying kites etc. Some of the
areas also accommodate provision for formal recreation - e.g. football and cricket pitches, golf
courses and bowling greens on the Commons and touring caravans and camping at Hartsholme
Country Park.
Many of the casual recreation areas particularly the larger ones, are safeguarded
in their present
use either by legislative or physical restrictions, 'official' designation and the fact they are vested
in
the City Council. Management Plans have been prepared for some of these areas and others will
be prepared as necessary. The major casual recreation areas are listed in Policy 52A (Major Areas
of Informal Open Space).
Most of these areas also have intrinsic nature conservation and landscape value, in
varying
degrees, and contribute to Lincoln's Critical Natural Assets and Basic Natural Stock. Their scale
and distribution, although largely a product of historical 'accident', established ownership and
various, long-standing physical restrictions, are such that they have provided the framework for the
Green Wedges strategy. The benefits of these areas include safeguarding 'long' views into and out
of the City, maintaining and strengthening Lincoln's landscape character and setting, creating
linkages vital to biodiversity, providing attractive corridors for the development of foot, cycleway
and
bridleway networks and giving people easy \ access to substantial areas of open space.