After a three-year project, the River Somerset has been reconnected to the flood plain
eat’s agricultural fields have been transformed into a thriving wetland following a three-year project to reconnect part of a river to its floodplain.
Work at the National Trust’s Holnicote Estate in Somerset has seen a 1.2km section of the River Aller filled in to create a new seven hectare wetland.
It is the first time this approach, known as Stage 0, developed in Oregon in the US, has been tried on a major river of this scale in the UK.
As part of preparations for the major work, more than 25,000 wetland trees were planted, including willows, bird cherry and black poplar, and water voles were relocated to an adjacent area.
Fish and other aquatic life such as eels were temporarily removed during the work but have now begun to return to their homes from upstream and downstream.
The bulk of the work involved moving more than 4,000 tons of earth to fill the river channel and placing 700 tons of fallen timber harvested on the property into the flood plain.
This created an important ‘deadwood’ habitat, on which 40% of the UK’s wildlife partly depends, but which has largely been lost.
Once this was complete, the team sowed 250kg of riparian wildflower seeds – such as wild carrots and meadowsweet – throughout the site to attract pollinators such as bees and butterflies.
The work was completed at the end of July and a new landscape is emerging as the river channel has connected to the floodplain, creating a complex water landscape with channels, ponds, wetlands and swamps.
Ben Eardley, National Trust project manager, said: “Finally the river can flow as it always should.
“After years of research, planning and a successful pilot project, we can finally watch the river evolve, find its own course and pour into the floodplain to create a rich mosaic of wetland landscape.
(Wetland habitats) are critically important and can be compared to rainforests in terms of their ability to store carbon, their diversity of wildlife and food sources, and their cooling effect on the landscape
“This is a critically important moment that will significantly improve the health of our river basins, helping them and the wider wetland ecology to recover and thrive.
“In the UK we have unfortunately lost over 90% of our wetland habitat.
“They are critically important and can be compared to rainforests in terms of their ability to store carbon, their diversity of wildlife and food sources, and their cooling effect on the landscape.
“This wetland will also retain more water during floods or droughts, making it better able to cope with extreme weather events or climate changes, helping local communities and protecting farms.”
“It will also help improve water quality by capturing and filtering the water as it flows through the landscape. All together will rejuvenate the surrounding landscape. It’s a win-win situation.”
The Stage 0 river restoration approach aims to reverse centuries of historic drainage to create valuable refuges for nature that also benefit people.
At Holnicote, the new waterscape will help slow river flow and retain water to combat floods and drought and increase wildlife diversity.
Such landscapes can store more carbon over time, with additional trees and brush helping to create shade and wetter soils, resulting in a cooler microclimate.
According to the National Trust, 27 hectares of land will benefit, with lowland meadows, woodland pastures and wildflower meadows creating a more diverse and rich place for water collection.
The birds such as the house martin, wagtail and bird of prey, kestrel and buzzard that previously lived at the site are now joined by other birds such as herons and egrets, as well as insects such as dragonflies and large numbers of toads and frogs.
Mr Eardley added: “It is so encouraging to see wildlife recovering so quickly and reclaiming the area.”
“When you think about how much nature we have lost, it is projects like this that make you realize how quickly we can make a difference and start to address the damage we have unknowingly caused to our native wildlife, particularly over the last 70 years Years to undo.” Years.”
The project – part of the National Trust’s Riverlands program – was funded by the Interreg 2 Seas Co-Adapt program, the Environment Agency, Somerset Rivers Authority, the Green Recovery Challenge Fund and Frugi.
It will be closely monitored to guide future reconnections of floodplains in the UK and abroad.
https://www.standard.co.uk/news/environment/somerset-fish-oregon-birds-environment-agency-b1106913.html After a three-year project, the River Somerset has been reconnected to the flood plain
