Editing Dartmoor (section)

==Preservation==
[[File:Dartmoor Clapper Bridge mod.jpg|thumb|The [[clapper bridge]] at [[Postbridge]]]]
[[File:Dartmoor pony 1.jpg|thumb|[[Dartmoor pony]] near [[Widecombe in the Moor]]]]

Throughout human history, the landscape has been exploited for industrial purposes. In recent years,{{when|date=November 2021}} controversy has surrounded the work of industrial conglomerates [[Imerys]] and Sibelco (formerly Watts Blake Bearne), who have used parts of the moor for [[china clay]] mining. Licences were granted by the [[British Government]] but were recently{{when|date=November 2021}} renounced after sustained public pressure from bodies such as the [[Dartmoor Preservation Association]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.dartmoorsociety.com/files/debates/chinaclay.html |title=The 7th Dartmoor Society Debate: How Important is China Clay to Dartmoor?|last=Hedges |first=Mike |publisher=The Dartmoor Society |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110715224602/https://www.dartmoorsociety.com/files/debates/chinaclay.html |date=2004 |archive-date=15 July 2011 |access-date=8 June 2017 }}</ref>

The British government has made promises to protect the integrity of the moor; however, the cost of compensating companies for these licences, which may not have been granted in today's political climate, could prove prohibitive.

The military use of the moor has been another source of controversy, as when training was extended in January 2003. The [[national park authority]] received 1,700 objections before making the decision. Objectors said that Dartmoor should be an area for recreation, and that the training disturbs the peace.

Those who objected included the [[Open Spaces Society]] and the [[Dartmoor Preservation Association]]. During her lifetime, [[Sylvia Sayer]] was another outspoken critic of the damage that she perceived that the army was doing to the moor.