Deadline 13th November
The Nature Restoration Fund (NRF) is intended to tackle the environmental impacts of development on protected sites affected by nutrient pollution, including those in the Lugg catchment. Developers will contribute to a shared fund, with spending guided by an Environmental Delivery Plan (EDP).
Natural England is currently preparing an EDP for the Lugg catchment. To support this, a Partnership between the Wye and Usk Foundation, Herefordshire Wildlife Trust, and Herefordshire Rural Hub has been commissioned to identify practical conservation projects, called Conservation Measures (CMs) and suitable locations. This work will help inform the wider assessment and planning process for the Lugg EDP which is being undertaken by Natural England and is a chance for impactful interventions which consider all factors above the regulatory baseline that are contributing to the condition of the Lugg SSSI/SAC to be identified (and solutions to be funded).
Herefordshire Rural Hub have asked local landowners for their interest in hosting land based CMs and are reaching out to delivery partners in the Wye Catchment Partnership to identify any relevant current or prospective projects in the Lugg catchment (including Arrow and Frome). They will need to collate and assess opportunities which contribute to the restoration of the structure and function of the site’s’ habitats and features, improve climate resilience and support wider nature recovery for the benefit of the River Lugg SAC, for a minimum of 100 years.
Evaluation of CM opportunities by the delivery partners will include key constraints and dependencies and will focus on delivering the best possible outcomes for the River Lugg and downstream areas. The Partnership have engaged consultants Haskoning, who are writing the new Wye Catchment Plan and Wye Nutrient Management Plan to support this process and provide quality assurance.
Natural England will undertake a full consultation process for the draft Lugg EDP. Alongside other consultees, Partners may review the draft EDP when it is published and share feedback about implementation and effectiveness.
Potential in-perpetuity catchment measures will be collated and scored by the partnership with the results submitted to Natural England by the end of December 26.
Responses need to be collated for evaluation by 13th November.
If you have not been contacted by Herefordshire Rural Hub directly and are aware of any potential projects in the Lugg catchment please contact wendy.ogden@wyeuskfoundation.org
Originally posted by Herefordshire Rural Hub, more information here: https://herefordshireruralhub.co.uk/farmers-land-managers-invited-to-steer-new-funding-approach-for-the-lugg-catchment/