Prince William's Latest Project on His Vast Estate to Restore Ancient Environment Takes Shape (2025)

Prince William is seeing a project to regrow a forest take shape.

Volunteers have planted 450 new saplings in a bid to extend the size of some woodland and help it become more resilient to the changes in the climate. They are the first trees to be planted since William’s Duchy of Cornwall announced the plans when he visited the area in July 2023.

The project to double the size of Wistman’s Wood in the often harsh environment of Dartmoor, in the southwest of England, is a key conservation plan of the Prince of Wales' Duchy of Cornwall.

The wood is considered an iconic place, known not only for its collection of rare species of mosses and lichens only found within two small, wooded areas, but it is also embedded in the history, folklore and mythology of the area.

Prince William, 42, took over the running of the Duchy of Cornwall when he inherited it from his father,King Charles, upon the death ofQueen Elizabeth in September 2022.

The estate of farmland, property and commercial businesses is worth around $1.3 billion and provides William with an annual income of around $30 million. He is also using it to instill environmental initiatives, like that at Wistman's Wood, and also to support his homelessness project, Homewards, with the construction of new social housing.

On March 31, Prince William’s office released a new film showing the start of the planting on the moorland. The plan is to extend Wistman’s Wood to rebuild a temperate rainforest, which have become increasingly rare. Only 8% of original temperate rainforests are left in Devon and Cornwall, Kensington Palace said, citing the local South West Rainforest Alliance.

Geraint Richards, Head Forester to the Duchy of Cornwall, said in a statement, “The work at the iconic Wistman’s Wood is a flagship for the wider work that the Duchy of Cornwall and its many partners on Dartmoor have been working on in recent years. This shared approach to the enhancement of nature, people’s access to and enjoyment of the countryside will help underpin the future sustainability of Dartmoor’s farmed landscape and the vibrance of its local communities.”

With the help of Moor Trees, they are using young trees sourced from local, ancient woodlands so that they share the genetics and have the resilience to survive and thrive in this setting.

Work to expand the wood has been done in conjunction with Duchy of Cornwall farmer, John Malseed, who has been undertaking innovative livestock grazing which has brought healthy numbers of young oak trees to regenerate around the woodland’s fringes, William’s office says.

Sam Manning, the Woodland Trust’s Project Officer for South West rainforestssaid in a statement they were “delighted” to be partnering with the project. "Wistman’s Wood is an iconic Temperate Rainforest site, and emblematic of the wider mission to restore rainforests in the U.K. The Woodland Trust is delighted to be supporting the project by funding stock fencing that will allow the control of grazing animals and is essential in allowing the new woodland to establish.”

“We are committed to not only protecting and restoring precious ancient temperate rainforest in Cornwall and Devon but expanding it too. It's a really exciting time for the restoration of nature”.

Prince William and wife Kate Middleton, 43, are spending much of the coming weeks with their kids,Prince George, 11,Princess Charlotte, 9, andPrince Louis, 6, as they are on school vacation in the run-up to the Easter weekend of April 20.

On March 30, they marked the U.K.’s Mother’s Day with a message from Kate where she expounded on the virtues of immersing in nature, something which has helped her as she recovers from cancer. "Over the past year, nature has been our sanctuary," Princess Kate, 43, captioned herInstagram post, which featured a video made up of outdoor scenes.

"This Mother’s Day, let us celebrate Mother Nature and recognize how our bond with the natural world can help not only nurture our inner selves but remind us too of the role we play within the rich tapestry of life," she continued, concluding the post with. "C."

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In January, Prince William spent a day on a 650-acre farm on the border of England and Wales to highlight and learn about the work Heather and Phil Gorringe and their son Monty are doing to use regenerative agricultural methods.Using methods like that to help farms like theirs become less reliant on chemicals and fertilizers is crucial as the Duchy estate strives to move to a net zero point by 2032.

“It’s a new generation,” Heather Gorringe, who with her husband Phil has been a Duchy tenant farmer since 2000, tells PEOPLE of the change she’s noticed. “We went to the handover between King Charles and the prince at St. James’s Palace, and it struck me that they were different in the sense that, for King Charles, farming is in his blood. He is a farmer. But, having met Prince William on the farm today, I can see how important the Duchy is to him, and also that he is committed to a sustainable future.”

“You only have to look at what he’s doing with the Earthshot Prize to know he’s on that route,” she continues. “The things we are doing here are up his street.”