Download Flooding River dip Kingfisher Source to Sea Living Landscape

Source to Sea
Living Landscape
Sustainable river management
for people and wildlife
The Severn begins as a bubbling mountain
spring in the heart of the Cambrian mountains.
It gathers volume as it tumbles down through
the rain-soaked hills. Throughout its 220 mile
journey across Wales and England it is joined
by several sizeable rivers, including the Vyrnwy,
Wye and the Usk.
Several times, following heavy and prolonged rain, the River Severn
has overflown its banks flooding places where thousands of people
live and work. At the heart of this flooding was land use changes
taking place in our uplands, development on our floodplains and
modification of the river and river corridors over the years. This
has all had an adverse effect on our wildlife such as kingfishers,
sandmartins and otters.
A5
A458
Living
Landscape
Area
A458
A53
A49
A483
Shrewsbury
Welshpool
A5
River
Severn
A470
A458
Newtown
A44
E
N
G
L
A
D
River
Severn
A470
Llandrindod
Wells
N
A49
A483
A44
River dip
Kingfisher
The response was all too often multi-million pound engineering
projects, building concrete barriers to prevent flooding. However,
this may have made the problem worse. Clearly long term, less
costly and more positive solutions must be found.
Therefore, Montgomeryshire Wildlife Trust (MWT) are working with
working our partners to restore and recreate wetland habitats and
floodplains across the whole catchment. In turn, this should help
vital ecosystem services such as reduction of flooding, improved
drinking water quality and rebuilding the beautifully interconnected
biodiversity of the river and its catchment.
Flooding
Gwarchod Natur ar gyfer y Dyfodol
However, the vast majority of floodplain along the River Severn
is farmland and the wet grassland habitats result from historic
agricultural management. Therefore, wetland habitat restoration on
the extensive scale envisaged depend upon generating widespread
support and commitment of the farming community. MWT are
focused on offering three key services:
• Viable economic incentives
• Realistic objectives
• Sound management guidance
Protecting Wildlife for the Future
Source to Sea
Living Landscape
Social
Red shank
Our natural fascination for wildlife is important in its own right too.
For many years the Wildlife Trusts have worked to encourage a
deeper cultural appreciation of the rivers and their association
with people’s lives. We will continue with this work within the Source
to Sea Project.
Fal
Riverls on
Severn
This Living Landscape brings together the combined skills and
resources of nine Wildlife Trusts along the course of the River
Severn. They are already planning and implementing exemplary
projects, at various scales, that contribute to this big vision for the
River Severn. They recognise that by working at this landscape
scale we can provide the conditions for wildlife to thrive in the future.
If nature is to survive it needs to be given space to live and grow.
Vision
To create a diverse and sustainable landscape within the River
Severn catchment where wildlife thrives, landowners prosper and
flooding incidents are significantly reduced. This Living Landscape
will encourage a deeper cultural appreciation of the rivers and their
association with people’s lives.
Environment
Wetlands are one of the world’s most threatened habitats; a natural
strategy for the River Severn would boost the future chances of
many wild plants, birds, mammals and insects. MWT are already
working on the restoration of over 100ha of floodplain. Now the
vision is to restore 2,700 hectares of land to create a mosaic of fen,
marsh, wet woodland, saltmarsh and wet grassland. Plants such
as cuckoo flower, ragged robin and marsh marigolds will return and
birds including redshank, snipe, skylark will have a place to sing and
breed.
MWT are also working on to restore 40,000ha of peat bogs at
the source of the Severn. Peat bogs provide us with natural flood
storage, soaking up water like a sponge. Keeping them wet not only
helps slow down rain-runoff it is also a vital part of tackling climate
change. When peat bogs are in good condition, tonnes of carbon
are locked away. The Wildlife Trusts have shown that through
practical demonstration and sustainable land management is good
for wildlife and reduces the risk of flooding. This also meets Water
Framework Directive targets.
Gwarchod Natur ar gyfer y Dyfodol
MWT and its partner organisations aim encouraging people to
explore wetlands and take a closer look at what can be offered.
Community and stakeholder engagement is key to all of the
work undertaken.
Economic
MWT are working with farmers to achieve significant economic
benefits for farm enterprises that also achieve environmental
outcomes. They are working with farmers to diversify into wildlife
tourism and niche food markets, as well as being paid to manage
floodplains to soak up water.
MWT believe that cattle provide many of the solutions.
Skillfully managed cattle grazing can restore and maintain a varied
landscape with richer wildlife. Their hooves break up the turf
improving water permeability and creating places for wild seed to
germinate, while the grazing habits of cattle can prevent tougher
plant species dominating. The marketing of conservation-grade,
slower-growing hill beef can provide new high value income
for farmers.
The promotion of the agri-environment schemes to farmers in the
key wetland restoration zones has achieved significant gains in wet
grassland re-creation. Improving wetland habitats will support rural
tourism, especially angling, bird watching and walking, thereby
boosting the local economy. Beautiful landscapes and charismatics
wildlife draw visitors; the richer the environment the stronger
the draw.
Key Partners: The Severn Rivers Trust, Visit Wales,
Natural Resources Wales, BIFFA and partner Wildlife Trusts .
Join Montgomeryshire Wildlife Trust
42 Broad Street, Welshpool. Powys, SY21 7RR
01938 555654
[email protected]
www.montwt.co.uk
Protecting Wildlife for the Future