Money which comes from tax on the waste people in the UK throw away will be responsible for almost 1 million pound being spent on conservation by the RSPB (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds) across the UK, with Newport Wetlands National Nature Reserve in South Wales set to benefit.
The grant of 35,340 pound is the first of potential three payments totalling 110,940 pound across three years that will pay to restore up to 54 hectares of coastal floodplain grazing marsh, which is a Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP) habitat at the National Nature Reserve which is owned and managed by the Countryside Council for Wales (CCW).
Biffaward, a multi-million pound environmental fund, which uses landfill tax credits donated by Biffa Waste Services, has given the RSPB the grant to help conservation projects right across the UK.
The RSPB/Biffaward Programme aims to maintain and achieve favourable conditions and restore UK BAP priority habitat across the country in areas eligible for Biffaward funding.
The RSPB is using the money at 14 other nature reserves to protect and manage grazing marshes. This is the first time Newport Wetlands has received such funding from the Biffaward Programme, and work starts this month.
At Newport Wetlands National Nature Reserve, the Biffaward funding will allow the RSPB and the Countryside Council for Wales (CCW) to:
· Restore and extend the Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) of the land, through renovation of the wet grassland ditches and the re-establishment of an ancient ditch.
· The ancient ditch to be re-established is 226 metres long. It will benefit the scarce plants and invertebrates of the Gwent levels ditches by providing habitat. Importantly the ditch will improve connectivity making it easier for plants and invertebrates to spread and move from one part the ditch system to another. The wet grassland ditches will be improved by removing the most southerly hedge on one side of the ditch. This will allow light to reach the surface of the water essential for wetland plants and the many species of invertebrates that depend on them.
· Sluices, pipes and dams will be installed so that water levels can be maintained in the summer. This is important as without these measures ditches can dry up at the very time when aquatic plants should be growing fastest and when aquatic invertebrates are most active.
· The Biffaward funding will also be used to help monitor and evaluate different types of fencing to try to diminish the threat of predators to local wildlife, particularly breeding Lapwing a typical, yet increasingly scarce species of coastal grazing marsh.
Over the last 60 years there have been substantial losses in the size and quality of this important wildlife habitat. Grazing marsh has decreased by an estimated 40 per cent since the 1930s. As well as wading birds like Lapwing and Snipe, they are also vital habitats for numerous mammals, insects, rare plants, reptiles and amphibians.
Lewis James, RSPB Cymru South Wales Reserves Area Manager, said: “The grant from Biffaward is very significant, the money for Newport Wetlands will allow us to do important work to enhance the habitat of the nature reserve and will help our threatened grazing marshes and give something back to the environment.”
Gillian French, Biffaward Programme Manager, added: “The natural environment is important to all our lives. Our work with the RSPB will have a very positive impact on biodiversity, and we’re delighted to award a grant which will benefit wildlife in Wales”.
Some of the RSPB’s most ambitious wildlife projects have been supported under long-term funding agreements through funders such as Biffaward. The Biffaward Programme uses landfill waste tax credits to fund environmental projects surrounding landfill sites and beyond.
The grant of 35,340 pound is the first of potential three payments totalling 110,940 pound across three years that will pay to restore up to 54 hectares of coastal floodplain grazing marsh, which is a Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP) habitat at the National Nature Reserve which is owned and managed by the Countryside Council for Wales (CCW).
Biffaward, a multi-million pound environmental fund, which uses landfill tax credits donated by Biffa Waste Services, has given the RSPB the grant to help conservation projects right across the UK.
The RSPB/Biffaward Programme aims to maintain and achieve favourable conditions and restore UK BAP priority habitat across the country in areas eligible for Biffaward funding.
The RSPB is using the money at 14 other nature reserves to protect and manage grazing marshes. This is the first time Newport Wetlands has received such funding from the Biffaward Programme, and work starts this month.
At Newport Wetlands National Nature Reserve, the Biffaward funding will allow the RSPB and the Countryside Council for Wales (CCW) to:
· Restore and extend the Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) of the land, through renovation of the wet grassland ditches and the re-establishment of an ancient ditch.
· The ancient ditch to be re-established is 226 metres long. It will benefit the scarce plants and invertebrates of the Gwent levels ditches by providing habitat. Importantly the ditch will improve connectivity making it easier for plants and invertebrates to spread and move from one part the ditch system to another. The wet grassland ditches will be improved by removing the most southerly hedge on one side of the ditch. This will allow light to reach the surface of the water essential for wetland plants and the many species of invertebrates that depend on them.
· Sluices, pipes and dams will be installed so that water levels can be maintained in the summer. This is important as without these measures ditches can dry up at the very time when aquatic plants should be growing fastest and when aquatic invertebrates are most active.
· The Biffaward funding will also be used to help monitor and evaluate different types of fencing to try to diminish the threat of predators to local wildlife, particularly breeding Lapwing a typical, yet increasingly scarce species of coastal grazing marsh.
Over the last 60 years there have been substantial losses in the size and quality of this important wildlife habitat. Grazing marsh has decreased by an estimated 40 per cent since the 1930s. As well as wading birds like Lapwing and Snipe, they are also vital habitats for numerous mammals, insects, rare plants, reptiles and amphibians.
Lewis James, RSPB Cymru South Wales Reserves Area Manager, said: “The grant from Biffaward is very significant, the money for Newport Wetlands will allow us to do important work to enhance the habitat of the nature reserve and will help our threatened grazing marshes and give something back to the environment.”
Gillian French, Biffaward Programme Manager, added: “The natural environment is important to all our lives. Our work with the RSPB will have a very positive impact on biodiversity, and we’re delighted to award a grant which will benefit wildlife in Wales”.
Some of the RSPB’s most ambitious wildlife projects have been supported under long-term funding agreements through funders such as Biffaward. The Biffaward Programme uses landfill waste tax credits to fund environmental projects surrounding landfill sites and beyond.
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