Latest news with #LifeWader
BBC News
04-06-2025
- General
- BBC News
River Breamish rerouting in Northumberland to be reversed
Work has begun to restore a river's traditional course after centuries of re-routing straightened it to create historic meandering of a 1km (0.6 mile) section of the River Breamish on the Harehope Estate, south of Wooler in Northumberland, will be are excavating and diverting the river into its historic channels, installing silt traps, shallow ponds, wetlands, embankment breaches and constructing new woody Breamish restoration is expected to be completed by late Summer, the Life Wader project said. It is part of a wider River Till Restoration Strategy, named after the river the Breamish flows from its floodplain has led to a decline in freshwater species, reduced biodiversity and an increased risk of flooding, Life Wader work, which has been in development since 2019 and received planning approval in 2024, got under way late last week. Phil Kearney, project manager at Tweed Forum which is involved in the restoration, said: "We should be hopefully complete within about eight to 10 weeks."Jim Heslop, from the Environment Agency in north-east England, said the scheme will give "a boost for wildlife".It is part of a five-year, £5.8m nature recovery project co-funded by the European Union and due for completion in December 2026. Additional reporting by James Robinson, Local Democracy Reporting Service Follow BBC North East on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
Yahoo
18-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Work begins to clear invasive plants from coast
Work has begun to clear invasive plants to help protect "fragile and precious" species in sand dunes. Diggers are removing two areas of buckthorn, a small spiny tree, from Warkworth Dunes which are part of and maintained by the Northumberland Coast National Landscape (NCNL). The shrubs can grow anywhere, but plants like orchids and the bloody cranesbill, the county flower of Northumberland, can only grow in the dunes, the NCNL said. Nature Recovery Officer Mark Middleton said the work might look destructive but it was "important" to protect the plants. The NCNL said sand dunes provide vital habitat for plants, insects, reptiles and birds, but some are in poor condition with species, often accidently introduced by humans, pushing out those that only grow in dunes. Without management, the invasive plants would spread and a "rare vital" habitat would be lost, the organisation said. "The diggers will remove the invasive species creating bare sand where grasses and flowers that live in the dunes can regrow," Mr Middleton said, adding: "Although the presence of diggers may look destructive initially, this work is important for protecting [the dunes]. "The work will be completed quickly with minimal intrusion for people using the area and there will be signs indicating where the work is taking place." The work is being carried out by local contractors as part of the Life Wader project, a £5.8m nature recovery scheme. Funded by Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), via its adviser on the environment Natural England, it aims to reverse the decline of habitats in the Tweed Catchment and on the Northumberland Coast. Similar work is taking place in Northumberland as part of the same project at Bamburgh Dunes, Embleton Links and Buston. Follow BBC North East on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram. Send your story ideas here. Project gives children 'first trip to beach' Land returned to sea for habitat creation Part of historic golf course falls into the sea Northumberland Coast National Landscape
BBC News
18-02-2025
- General
- BBC News
Work begins at Warkworth to clear invasive plants from dunes
Work has begun to clear invasive plants to help protect "fragile and precious" species in sand are removing two areas of buckthorn, a small spiny tree, from Warkworth Dunes which are part of and maintained by the Northumberland Coast National Landscape (NCNL). The shrubs can grow anywhere, but plants like orchids and the bloody cranesbill, the county flower of Northumberland, can only grow in the dunes, the NCNL Recovery Officer Mark Middleton said the work might look destructive but it was "important" to protect the plants. The NCNL said sand dunes provide vital habitat for plants, insects, reptiles and birds, but some are in poor condition with species, often accidently introduced by humans, pushing out those that only grow in dunes. Without management, the invasive plants would spread and a "rare vital" habitat would be lost, the organisation said."The diggers will remove the invasive species creating bare sand where grasses and flowers that live in the dunes can regrow," Mr Middleton said, adding: "Although the presence of diggers may look destructive initially, this work is important for protecting [the dunes]. "The work will be completed quickly with minimal intrusion for people using the area and there will be signs indicating where the work is taking place." The work is being carried out by local contractors as part of the Life Wader project, a £5.8m nature recovery by Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), via its adviser on the environment Natural England, it aims to reverse the decline of habitats in the Tweed Catchment and on the Northumberland work is taking place in Northumberland as part of the same project at Bamburgh Dunes, Embleton Links and Buston. Follow BBC North East on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram. Send your story ideas here.
