Farmers are campaigning to save the Herdwick sheep breed within the Lake District amid fears that upland farming there faces 'extinction'.
The farmers, who have launched an online petition, warn that the breed is on the 'brink of being wiped out' amid declines in sheep numbers in the region.
They propose a new Lake District Engagement Body (LDEB) is set up by the government with remit to ensure all plans and policies are agreed, with input from local famers.
Keith Rowand is one of many upland farmers throughout the Lake District struggling to keep the Herdwick sheep breed, which is synonymous with the area, thriving.
He warns that upland farming in the Lake District faces "extinction by those that are responsible for preserving it under the auspices of the World Heritage site".
Defra, English Nature, the National Trust, the Lake District National Planning Board are blamed for urging farmers to "reduce numbers and offer money for re-wilding".
He says this is "at odds" with the core Lake District Special Qualities and Outstanding Universal Value for inscription as a World Heritage site.
The farmers, who launched the petition, say: "These bodies continue with hidden agendas to turn the Lake District into a tourism destination without heed for preserving the agro-pastoralism embedded over centuries that is the core attribute of the Lake District.
"In the words of Tim Farron, MP for South Lakes, 'by intention or by accident the government is going to massively undermine what the Lake District looks like.'"
The farmers are seeking 10,000 signatures to get a response from the government and 100,000 to get the matter debated in parliament.
"The World Heritage status may well be lost and gone forever," they warn, "The two outcomes are causal and irrevocable.
"The Lake District you know is changing and for the worst."
