The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has announced his plans to rewild London, including bringing back beavers to Ealing. 

Monday 20th March is World Rewilding Day and Khan has committed £1 million to the Rewild London Fund to fund 22 projects to help the rewilding of the capital. 

One of the projects is in partnership with the Ealing Wildlife Group, Ealing Council, and Friends of Horsenden Hill to help bring beavers back to West London after a 400-year absence. 

The chosen site in Ealing will be transformed into a flourishing and immersive wetland, combatting the climate crisis and creating a biodiverse ecosystem for plant and animal diversity and Rewild Funding will help drive the project forward. 

Khan said: "We are now facing dual climate and ecological emergencies worldwide, which further threaten our ability to survive on our planet.  

"Despite the harm inflicted on the natural world, we have the power to make amends, and I am committed to ensuring that London is at the vanguard of efforts to reverse the trends of declining biodiversity and the destruction of nature. 

"Rewilding allows nature to take the lead and is an exciting way to create healthier ecosystems and allow humans and wildlife to live together more harmoniously.  

"I'm proud that London is leading the way once again and excited to see what can be achieved with this further £1m of funding.  

"We're cleaning up our city, re-establishing lost species and reconnecting people and nature as we build a greener, fairer city for all Londoners." 

The £850,000 fund, delivered by the London Wildlife Trust with commitment from Amazon's Right Now Climate Fund, will go to projects focusing in and around London's Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation. 

Other projects being backed are: Thamesmead Pollinator Corridor, Palewell Beverley Brook Restoration, Yeading Brook Unbound, and Beckton Park Meadows. 

All of the projects combined will help around 116 hectares of priority habitat to be restored or created, the equivalent to five St James's Parks.   

Nick Swallow, Citizen Zoo Fundraising Operations Officer said: "Across Europe and North America, beavers are known to thrive alongside urban communities. Bringing a range of benefits from increasing resilience to the challenges of climate breakdown to enriching people's daily lives, as they encounter these magnificent mammals in their local greenspaces.  

"With the GLA's support and alongside our partners Ealing Wildlife Group, Ealing Council and Friends of Horsenden Hill, we hope to challenge the perceptions of Londoners and demonstrate how London too, can embrace these ecosystem engineers as we strive for a healthier, wilder future in which our Capital can become a leader in urban rewilding, which will greatly benefit not only wildlife populations but local communities too."