A VOLUNTEERING project to help conserve the Tamar Valley will be using modern technology to monitor the changing landscape with a new smartphone app — only the second area in the UK to do so.

Tamar Valley Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty's Helping Hands for Heritage project — which aims to expand the potential of volunteering in the Tamar Valley and help to protect and care for its natural and cultural heritage — is set to start using the 'Rate My View' app, developed by Plymouth University and South Devon AONB.

The free app, available on Apple and Android, enables people to capture pictures and comment upon landscapes within the AONB and share them with land managers. Users will be able to take pictures of scenes and landscapes that they like — and dislike — and explain why.

The app uses GPS technology to pinpoint the users' location and can even detect the direction the person is facing. The photo is automatically uploaded to the companion website and they can then label the view as 'nice' or 'poor' and leave feedback for the AONB.

The technology has been designed and built by Plymouth University and has so far only been used in South Devon. Developers hope to roll it out across the UK in the future.

Helping Hands for Heritage project officer Sam Barnes said the new app would help with the wider project of landscape monitoring.

She said: 'What we would like to do is more monitoring of more things more often.

'Although Rate My View will play a part in helping, what we are really trying to do is monitor the changing landscape.

'We want to look at things like the condition of the ancient hedgerows, historic trees and historic bridges etc and monitor how much the landscape is changing; if people think things are changing negatively, we can think of ways to try to combat that. Obviously there will also be changes that will be positive and we want to look at those too.

'The idea is to look at different ways to address issues that are raised and work towards better land management.

'We are trying to make landscape monitoring more exciting to different people and hopefully using this new app will help with that.

'We know of course there are people who don't have smartphones or would rather go out with a pen and clipboard and that's fine too.'

Dr John Martin, of Plymouth University's School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences, said: 'The Tamar Valley AONB is only the second place to start using this app.

'It is a novel way to get information about people's perceptions of the landscape.

'Landscape monitoring projects usually engage with the public in village halls through photos and questionnaires which is quite an old fashioned way of doing things.

'Once people are outside it gets them engaged with the landscape.

'We are just trying to get more people out and about in their AONB.

'The app helps to burrow into public perception, finding out what people really think about the area's countryside and villages.

'Over time, and the changing of the seasons, it will enable us to better understand how we view our landscapes and discover what we particularly value.'

The Tamar Valley AONB will be holding a training session in landscape monitoring in Bere Alston Church Hall on Tuesday (February 24).

The day will start with a classroom session in the morning then volunteers will get out and about in the afternoon.

The day runs from 10am to 4.30pm and lunch will be included.

To book a place, call the AONB on 01822 835030 or email [email protected]">[email protected]