They goat themselves a job
Goat a load of North Norfolk District Council’s latest recruits.

In 2015 during a council discussion of how to tidy and maintain the cliffs at Cromer that were getting untidy with overgrown vegetation which was in turn gathering rubbish that was being blown around and eventually rat infestation.

With normal mechanical clean up costing over £11,000 for just one small section, they realised they needed to do something on a larger scale without creating a larger bill. The animal control officer suggested using goats.

After initial research he found that standard domesticated goats would give up wandering on the extremely steep parts. After visiting Suffolk Wildlife Trust it was established that using Bagot Goats which were semi feral and part of a breeding program to protect the species.

The first herd of six goats were successfully placed on the cliffs in 2016. They are moved during some of the winter months to graze on more sheltered land.

The latest surveys of the cliffs have shown the brambles have gone and indigenous plants are thriving.
NNDC are also getting enquiries from other organisations and have even loaned out some of the goats to clear other areas.

Initially there were objections and there were worries about the goats causing erosion.
Now there is even Goats on a Slope merchandise available which goes towards the upkeep and continue their breeding program.