ANNUAL REVIEW

Transcription

1 ANNUAL REVIEW

2 CHAIRMAN S REPORT Once again flooding was a key issue of the last year. The Cheviots were hit particularly hard in July, and again in September, undoing a lot of the remedial work that had been done after the 2008 floods. The event that hit Cumbria so hard in October was also felt on Tweed and regardless of whether this is down to climate change, it highlighted the importance of flood risk management at the catchment scale. This is increasingly an important area for Tweed Forum as we are well placed to assist with delivering areas of the new Flood Risk Management Act in Scotland and Flood Risk Regulations in England. Much of our work is focused on working with land managers to build resilience at the farm scale in order to withstand these more extreme events in the long run. The Cheviot Futures initiative has started to show the relevance of climate adaptation in the Till catchment. The demonstration project at Craik aims to show what floodplain woodland and remeandering can contribute to slowing flows in the headwaters of the Teviot. We are working with a number of different bodies to understand what can be done to manage floods in the Bowmont-Glen catchment and the Eddleston Water, as well facilitating landscape changes in the Gala water that will increase water storage and slow down overland flow. In all these cases the challenge is integrating habitat restoration into the working agricultural landscape that brings about multiple benefits biodiversity, soil conservation, enhanced water quality, carbon sequestration, reduced sediment inputs, fisheries enhancement etc. Our close and increasing involvement with flooding issues demonstrates, once again, the Forum's ability to respond quickly and practically to emerging issues within the Tweed area; it might be said that this is our great strength. Individuals and organisations see us as being able to offer advice about solutions and co-ordinate the work of others to address new problems as they occur. The partnership approach to managing these issues shows that things can be done at the catchment scale. Indeed this has become a central mantra of the Forum to ensure the right measures are implemented in the right parts of the catchment, at a scale that really makes a difference. None of this would be possible without the help and support of a huge number of people and organisations who give time, money and expertise to make things happen and keep the Forum dynamic and at the cutting edge of catchment management. Bob Kay CBE Chairman 2

3 C A T C H M E N T PLANNING M A N A G E M E N T Catchment Management Plan a review of progress Area Advisory Group and Water Framework Directive The final Solway Tweed River Basin Management Plan (RBMP) was published in December 2009, following an extensive consultation period. The Forum was heavily involved in the RBMP consultation process, both as a consultee and on the Plan s Editorial Team. The Tweed AAG continued to meet throughout 2009 at a variety of locations throughout the catchment, including a site visit to see the work of the Till Wetland Restoration Project at Fenton. Typical issues covered/debated were: the consultation process for the final RBMP; integration of RBMP and CMP processes; the Tweed Area Management Plan and implementation of measures; SEPA restoration funding; SEPA priority catchments; Tweed RBMP data. One clear message was the desire to integrate the RBMP and CMP processes as much as possible to reduce duplication of effort and ensure best use of resources. With this in mind, meetings of the AAG and Tweed Forum were combined as much as possible in 2009/10. Revising the Catchment Management Plan (CMP) Following on from the review of progress, the CMP was completely overhauled and updated this year, to take account of completed actions as well as addressing new opportunities and challenges such as climate change, River Basin Management Planning and the new Scottish Rural Development Programme. The CMP is a complex document so this exercise represented a huge amount of work and credit goes to Nicola for doing such a thorough and comprehensive job. The CMP remains our guiding strategic document and this newly published edition ensures it remains relevant and effective. During 2009/10 a comprehensive review of progress in achieving the actions and targets set out in the Tweed CMP was undertaken. The full CMP partnership, from small local charities to local authorities and large national agencies, was engaged in the process of capturing CMP achievements and, as with the l a s t r e v i e w in 2005 ( s e e for details), a summary of progress has just been published in an attractive and concise format. This review provides a snapshot of progress over the last four years, as well as outlining priorities for the future. RIVERWORKS The Riverworks Group is one of the most active Forum technical sub groups and this is testament to the fact that there are 7 different statutory consultees and a great deal of legislative overlap when it comes to assessing and consenting in river and bankside engineering. The group has spent a good deal of time in trying to streamline processes at the local level whilst making representations for legislative changes at the national. Whilst feedback suggests that there is little hope on the latter in the short term, the agencies have begun to work more effectively together as witnessed during the most recent flood on the Bowmont and Glen. WATER QUALITY Eye Water Diffuse Pollution Project During 2009/10, Tweed Forum visited 29 farms on the Eye Water on behalf of SEPA. This These farms had been identified during a SEPA survey of the entire Eye catchment, arising from concerns over unrestricted access of livestock to water courses affecting the Eyemouth bathing water. The Forum facilitated 3 farms entering the SRDP during June and November with simple prescriptions such as small streams being double fenced, 3

4 areas of wider water margins fenced off and small numbers of trees planted. To deal with the smaller stretches of river that would not qualify for SRDP, a collaborative fencing application was submitted to the SEPA Restoration Fund. HABITATS and SPECIES Scottish Borders Mires SSSI project. Tweed Forum has been working with SNH to ensure all farmers with SSSI wetlands on their farm are aware of how they can help to conserve the very special series of wetlands knows as the Scottish Border Mires (and more specifically Fen habitats). The establishment of buffer zones around these wetlands mean that less nutrients, especially nitrogen and phosphates, enter these unique habitats and the rare botanical interest is protected. Tweed Forum contacted over 20 farmers, and where they were not already working on SRDP proposals with their agents, helped to submit 4 successful proposals. Till Wetland Restoration Project The project has continued with its core goal: to work with farmers and landowners to identify economic and environmentally sustainable alternatives in the management of the Till floodplain. At the beginning of 2009, work started on Nesbit Farm with a further 200m of floodbank removed thus allowing flood waters from the Till to flow unhindered across the floodplain once again. On Nesbit, the historic ditch network forms the basis of our plan to manage water levels across these fields. Over 1.75km of these old ditches have been opened out and re-profiled. With the aid of a series of simple sluices it will be possible to manage water levels in individual cells, or across the whole system. Work continued apace on West Fenton. The RSPB s Big Wheel Liebrecht rotary ditch cutter arrived to work on creating a new more natural channel for the Fenton Burn. In little over a week the machine had cut 850m of new channel and a further 470m of seasonally inundated foot drains plus a series of shallow scrapes. In October the Fenton Burn was finally diverted along its new channel. The burn, instead of flowing within an embanked and straightened channel, now meanders sedately across the newly restored floodplain. On North Doddington Farm our challenge was to create a high water table without impacting on the field drains in the surrounding arable fields. The answer to the problem lay in a culverted stream. Using a technique pioneered by the RSPB on Bearney Marshes, a wind pump will be used to lift water from the culverted stream into a series of newly created shallow ditches and swales. The RSPB ditcher was once again used to create 2km of these shallow water features. At Redesford, on the River Glen, 100m of floodbank was removed, with the spoil being used to create a raised access route for livestock. Near Powburn, on the River Breamish we ve been working with a local farmer to create a series of shallow swales and scrapes. These will be fed by water from a nearby ditch and it is hoped that this will help to reduce localised flooding further down the ditch. Tweed Invasives Project Last year saw the 7 th consecutive season of control with Kevin Stewart once again coordinating the campaign. On the Hogweed front, things began poorly with widespread reports from the ghillies and contractors that some patches were as bad as ever, highlighting the extraordinary persistence of the seed bank. However, the coordinated effort of all involved meant that flowering Hogweed was once again almost unheard of. The discovery of one huge patch away from the river highlighted the need to look further afield than just the river corridor. New patches of Knotweed, although small, are still being discovered and appear to be far more widespread than originally envisaged. The national media featured the plans to 4

5 introduce a biological control for Knotweed in the form of a beetle from Japan but it is not known at this juncture whether this introduction will be consented. Much more encouraging was the very significant reduction in Himalayan Balsam along the Till. The first few years of the project were demoralising in terms of both cost and effectiveness, but after 5 years there have been massive changes and there is the very real prospect that this plant could be eradicated. Wetland Vision project Last year an opportunity came up to expand on the wetland work we have already done in the Till catchment, using monies from Natural England s Wetland Vision scheme. The projects main aim was to increase the number of small wetlands and ponds in the catchment and the Forum enlisted the help of Steven Bell to coordinate this and he managed to initiate the creation and restoration of several ponds. FLOOD MANAGEMENT and CLIMATE CHANGE Cheviot Futures This project looks at climate proofing and adapting to changing environmental conditions. It is perhaps less of a project and more of an approach as much of the work we already carry out is relevant to climate change adaptation - it is just a matter of making it more focused in terms of building resilience to more extreme events. Phase 1 has, thus far, focused on disseminating the key messages and 2 key visitor centres at Fenton and Ingram have been upgraded to include interactive interpretation and displays on ways of adapting to climate change. In addition, the project has created a new 1km interpretation trail, suitable for all ages and abilities at Fenton. The route runs along the floodbanks, passing by, or over many of the new features and habitats being developed on the farm, before looping back to the Fenton Centre. The interpretation in the centre continues outside with the development of a audio trail for the new walk, along with a series of information boards. A small green classroom has been built adjacent to the main trail. This takes the form of an iron age hill fort and it will be screened by a living wall of willow. Other facets of the project include a large scale wind break project to help reduce wind erosion, which increasingly sees valuable topsoil and nutrients being lost from fields and often ending up in water courses. There have been a number of events including training for the rapid response and control of wildfires in the uplands; a workshop on cutting edge irrigation techniques and a busy stand at the Glendale Children's Day. Gala Water Habitat Restoration for Natural Flood Management Tweed Forum has been working with Scottish Borders Council to enhance the natural flood management attributes of land in the upper Gala Water catchment. Mitigation monies from wind farm developers have been allocated to bring about the creation of bog, heath and scrub habitat, and to date 3 farms have agreed to participate. It is hoped that 40ha of native riparian and gully woodlands will be created, along with smaller areas of water margin protection and wetland. This change of land use will have a small but significant attenuation effect on the rate of run-off of water from the slopes close to the Gala Water. It will also increase natural water storage and slow down flows. Eddleston Water Scoping Study The Eddleston Water joins the Tweed near Peebles and is heavily channelised through much of its length, with a number of properties at risk of flooding. The Forum, together with SEPA, SBC and Scottish Government, commissioned a scoping study to look into the opportunities for restoration work to improve the ecology of the water course but also assess the natural flood management potential. Whilst the 5

6 project has two separate aims they are very much complementary and we hope, in due course, to bring about remedial work that will deliver benefits on both fronts. Dundee University were appointed to take forward the study and much investigation work has been carried out in order to assess where the priorities lie. It is vital that we measure the effects of any work that takes place and the aim of the next phase is to install appropriate monitoring equipment. Crucially this project will also aim to assess the impact that ground water flows have on flood management and various ways of manipulating rainfall infiltration. Craik Natural Flood Management Demonstration Project This partnership project aims to demonstrate the potential for habitat restoration measures to alleviate flooding by slowing flow rates and increasing storage, both important elements of Natural Flood Management (NFM). Two measures meander restoration and the planting of leaky barriers in the floodplain are currently being employed by the project consultants MNV. The meander restoration works on the Borthwick Water, downstream of Craik village, were successfully completed during the second week of August 2009 under the very competent direction of MNV. Both the newly restored meander and logjams (used to block off the artificial channel) appear to be settling in well. The newly restored meander will increase the amount of habitat for species of conservation interest such as Atlantic salmon and Water Crowfoot by some 250m, in addition to the benefits for flood alleviation as one of a suite of NFM measures. Bowmont Water and River Glen One of hardest hit catchments during the floods of September 2008 and July 2009, was the Bowmont/ Glen (the Bowmont changes name to the Glen as it cross the border). Whilst fortunately no one was harmed, the damage to agricultural land and essential infrastructure was severe. Many hundreds of thousands of tonnes of gravel were shifted during these two events, smothering valuable fields with sediment and causing the river to change course altogether in some places Whilst emergency works were required to reinstate access and protect roads and bridges, some dredging work was less constructive and highlighted the need to manage the river in a more sustainable way. Tweed Forum was approached as an honest broker to initiate discussions between all landowners and the agencies. Following a very well attended public meeting, it was agreed that a farming/ landowner committee should be formed to help work towards a coordinated and long term management plan for the catchment. One of the first jobs was to understand what the river is doing and why: Where is the gravel coming from and why; how will the river react and change in future flood events; what are the vulnerable reaches and most importantly what can be done to increase the resilience in the future. Tweed Forum has pulled together a funding package and appointed MNV Consulting to carry out this task. In the meantime Tweed Forum has been visiting all farmers and landowners in the catchment to get to grips with their concerns and issues, as well as looking at practical land management measures that might help attenuate the effects of such events in the future. Other projects Tweed Aerial Survey Having been commissioned in 2007, the remaining sections of the catchment were finally flown during the summer of 2009 and this has been fed into the second phase of the project a full inventory of Phase 1 habitat types for the entire Tweed catchment. Tweed Forum has been making great use of the aerial images in our day-to-day work already and with the Phase 1 information we will be able to target our project work with even greater precision, knowing what type, and how much, of each habitat is available at a given site. Credit goes to SBC for making this happen under difficult circumstances. Habitat Liaison Group In recognition of the fact that there is scope 6

7 for some overlap between the work of main local environmental NGO s, a small working group was formed to ensure a coordinated and strategic approach to habitat work. The main players, Borders Forest Trust, Southern Uplands Partnership and Tweed Forum, focus on woodland, heathland and wetland habitats respectively. The aim of this small group is to aid communication between project officers on the ground and to ensure that there is no duplication of effort or multiple approaches to landowners. This, together with input from SBC, SNH, SEPA and Scottish Government, should mean that these practitioners work efficiently together whilst respecting the boundaries of each of the individual NGO s. A Tweed Wetland Strategy During the recent review of the Tweed Catchment Management Plan, the need for a more strategic approach to managing/ restoring/creating wetland habitat in the catchment became increasingly obvious. A document that provides context for our work, and prioritises future efforts, has long been an aspiration of many Forum members. To this end Tweed Forum enlisted the expert support of Maggie Magee (ex FWAG) and Chris Badenoch to help pull together a strategy for wetlands in conjunction with the EA, SBC, SEPA, and SNH. The result is a comprehensive and somewhat unique document which clearly sets out a road map for future wetland work in the catchment. Consultations Over the last year Tweed Forum responded to, or circulated, the following consultations: Wildlife And Natural Environment Bill Consultation Preparing For A Changing Climate: Second Consultation To Inform Scotland Climate Change Adaptation Framework Forestry and Water Guidelines Consultation wide range of groups including the Leader + Decision Making Groups LBAP partnerships in the Scottish Borders and Northumberland, New Ways Working Countryside Theme Team Catchment Sensitive Farming Steering Group. CATCH network Scottish Freshwater Group Constructed Wetlands Research Group Scottish Borders Flooding Liaison Advisory Group UNESCO HELP Programme Habitat Liaison Group Solway Tweed Editorial Team Staff attended, contributed to or gave presentations at the following courses and events: Catchment Sensitive Farming workshop ( p r e s e n t a t i o n s a n d p r a c t i c a l demonstrations) CATCH network Constructed Wetlands Research Group Presented at Berwickshire and North Northumberland European Marine Site Forum on behalf of RBMP team Presented at the SNIFFER Flood Risk Management Conference Presented at the Historic Environment Advisory Council Conference Presented at the Scottish Biodiversity Forum Research Conference Presented at the FBA North Region's Annual Conference Site visit with new Chair of the Heritage Lottery Fund Natural Flood Management Workshop LANTRA Irrigation workshop Southern Uplands Partnership AGM RAFTS Conference Launch of the SEPA River Basin Management Plans Children s Countryside Show (run by the Glendale Agricultural Society) Wider Networking Tweed Forum continues to be involved in a Future Plans The following will be priority areas for the 7

8 Forum over the coming year: To continue deliver the priority actions and targets in the new edition of the Tweed Catchment Management Plan; draw up new work programmes and continue to ensure that it links effectively and efficiently with the Tweed Solway RBMP To work with SEPA and the EA in delivering measures on the ground that help address the significant water management issues and help achieve good ecological status for those water bodies at risk. To continue to facilitate collaborative action through the SRDP on key areas such as diffuse pollution, habitat loss, natural flood management. To continue to offer the service of highlighting and responding to relevant legislation/consultations. In addition to this, the Forum will attempt to influence the legislation more proactively than through consultation alone, by actively briefing key people and agencies. To continue to develop and work up projects where our members see gaps and opportunities. To assist SBC in servicing the FLAG and helping delivery their Natural Flood Management aspirations in priority catchments. To deliver the eighth season of control on the Invasives project, including suppressing all Hogweed seed production and making real advances in the reduction of Himalayan Balsam on the Till. To ensure climate change issues are considered at every level of Forum activity To take advantage of income generating work through the consultancy arm as and when appropriate. Company Management Board of Directors and Executive Committee Directors - Bob Kay (Chairman) - Willie McGhee Borders Forest Trust - Chris Badenoch - Chris Spray- UNESCO Centre for Water Law, Policy and Science To continue to play a crucial role in wetland related issues, including managing the Till Wetland Restoration Project, Till Wetland Vision, Cheviot Futures and the Craik Natural Flood Management Demonstration Project. To take forward the priority actions within the newly published Tweed Wetland Strategy. To play a role in the Floods Directive and associated Flood Risk Management Act and help ensure this integrates with the WFD as smoothly as possible. Executive Committee: - John Hogger Environment Agency - Ian Lindley Scottish Borders Council - Andrew Panter SNH - Nick Yonge RTC/Tweed Foundation - Angela Foss - SEPA - Simon Henderson West Fenton Farm and Fenton Centre - Ian Davidson Scottish Government - Alan Goodson Marlefield Farm 8

9 Members The Company membership currently stands at 25: Borders Anglers Federation Borders Forest Trust Department of the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Environment Agency Forestry Commission National Farmers Union Scotland Natural England Northumberland County Council Northumberland National Park Authority Northumbrian Water Northumbrian Wildlife Trust Royal Society for the Protection of Birds River Tweed Commission Scottish Agricultural Colleges Scottish Borders Council Scottish Enterprise Scottish Environment Protection Agency Scottish Government Scottish Rural Property & Business Association Scottish National Farmers Union Scottish Natural Heritage Southern Uplands Partnership Scottish Water Tweed Foundation Visit Scotland Borders contributed directly to the Forum, in some form or another, over the past year: Scottish Natural Heritage Northumbrian Water Scottish Environment Protection Agency Scottish Borders Council Esmee Fairbairn Foundation Northumberland National Park Authority Forestry Commission Scotland River Tweed Commission Tweed Foundation Borders Forest Trust Royal Society for the Protection of Birds Tweed Forum Staff The staff of Tweed Forum for 2009/10 were: Luke Comins - Director Janet Landells - Finance /Office Manager Nicola Bissett - Catchment Management Planning Officer Alastair Laverty - Till Restoration Project Officer Hugh Chalmers - Collaborative Action Coordinator Finance We continue to rely on our members for core funding. These contributions are vital and our thanks go to those who have supported us over the last year. The following have 9