New vision for Borders wetlands project
Monday, August 29 2005
Scottish Borders Council has been awarded £28,000 by the Scottish Executive under the Biodiversity Action Grant Scheme for the Borders Wetlands Vision project, a strategic approach to wetland conservation in the area and a first for Scotland.
Dr Andy Tharme, Ecology Officer at Scottish Borders Council and project co-ordinator, said, "Scottish Borders holds wetland sites of national and international importance. We will be the first area in Scotland to adopt a strategic, information based approach to wetland conservation, and this is a real coup for the Borders."
Working with the Local Biodiversity Action Plan partners, Scottish Natural Heritage, Scottish Environment Protection Agency, Scottish Borders Biological Records Centre and Tweed Forum, SBC has commissioned Macaulay Institute in Aberdeen to produce a wetlands database using Geographical Information Systems (GIS) that will identify the existing, historical and potential wetland sites within the Borders.
Andy Tharme added, "The final report will have many uses; for example, to plan wetland biodiversity conservation, protect archaeological sites, help mitigate against flooding, and to identify opportunities for community wetland projects. We hope that this will also support farmers, landowners and their advisers by informing options under Land Management Contracts and identifying where wetlands can provide habitat-based solutions to meet the requirements of the Water Framework Directive."
Councillor John Elliot, SBC Executive Spokesman for Planning & Economic Development, said, "We are delighted to have received this funding from the Scottish Executive; this project shows the Council's commitment to meet its duty to further the conservation of biodiversity and will also assist rural and community development in the area."
In 2006, a second phase of the project hopes to survey a sample of wetland sites, where landowner permission is granted, to establish their status and condition. It is hoped that this will be the first step in the development a large scale wetland conservation project in the area.
Sarah Currie, Tweed Forum says "This important project will help us target actions to meet key objectives of the Tweed Catchment Management Plan. Tweed Forum hopes to play a leading role in the further development of a landscape scale wetland restoration project."
Emma Hay of SNH added, "By adopting a strategic approach to wetland conservation, we can help target resources to priority areas, protecting and enhancing the designated sites and building up a habitat network of wetlands throughout the Scottish Borders, benefiting biodiversity, land managers and communities."
* Borders Wetland Vision - an opportunity mapping approach to identify areas of potential for wetland habitats based on key criteria for soil type, geology, topography and climate.
* The categories of wetland habitats included are blanket bog, lowland raised bogs, fens, reedbeds, floodplain grazing marsh, the wet component of lowland and upland hay meadows, purple moor grass and rush pastures, wet woodlands and standing open water habitats.
* A Borders Wetland Inventory will provide a key basis for this study. This was developed under a Tweed Forum initiative, with further development by Scottish Borders Biological Records Centre.
* The Scottish Executive's Biodiversity Action Grants Scheme (BAGS) is available to help projects deliver the objectives of the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy and to help implement Local Biodiversity Action Plans.
* The Scottish Biodiversity Strategy was launched in May 2004 and sets out five key objectives:
1. Species & Habitats: To halt the loss of biodiversity and continue to reverse previous losses through targeted action for species and habitats
2. People: To increase awareness, understanding and enjoyment of biodiversity, and engage many more people in conservation and enhancement
3. Landscapes & Ecosystems: To restore and enhance biodiversity in all our urban, rural and marine environments through better planning, design and practice
4. Integration & Co-ordination: To develop an effective management framework that ensures biodiversity is taken into account in all decision making
5. Knowledge: To ensure that the best new and existing knowledge on biodiversity is available to all policy makers and practitioners
" The Scottish Borders Local Biodiversity Action Plan was launched in 2001 and identifies key issues affecting habitats in Coastal & Marine, Enclosed Farmland & Lowland Grassland, Woodland, Wetland, Upland and Urban environments see: http://www.scotborders.gov.uk/life/environment/naturalheritage
" The Macaulay Institute is a premier land use research institute in the UK. 270 staff are based at the Macaulay Institute in Aberdeen. The Macaulay Institute is an international leader in soil research and on the use of rural land use resources for the benefit of people and the environment and is involved in research across the globe. More about the Macaulay Institute can be found at http://www.macaulay.ac.uk/
Contacts for further information: Dr Andy Tharme, SBC Ecology Officer.
Tel: 01835-825060 Fax: 01835-825158 or ecologyofficer
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