Mark Francois, MP for Rayleigh and Wickford, recently spent a Friday morning visiting the Lower Raypits Nature Reserve, near Canewdon, where he was able to see first hand how the Essex Wildlife Trust plan to use the £91,389 grant from the SITA Trust for their new wetland restoration project.
The Essex Wildlife Trust reserve at Lower Raypits is an area of coastal grazing marsh on the River Crouch estuary which is recognized as a UK Priority Biodiversity Habitat due to its importance to wildlife, particularly wading birds. However the fields on which the site is based are currently too dry, thus the site is not yet delivering its potential for nature conservation. This is why an extensive network of shallow ditches and water storage lagoons will be created, using the SITA grant, to supplement the rainfall on the site in order to create optimum conditions for breeding waders in the spring and early summer.
Mark was joined on his visit to the nature reserve by Marek Gordon, Chairman and Chief Executive of the SITA Trust, and John Hall, CEO of Essex Wildlife Trust, who were shown around the reserve, which includes various elements the SITA Trust grant has helped to fund. Among these new features is a 5 million gallon water storage lagoon complete with gravel topped islands, new fencing and gates installed at Lion Creek Meadow, as well as the reseeding of Lower Raypits Grassland, all of which are aimed are making the Lower Raypits Nature Reserve a more hospitable environment for wildlife.
Commenting on his visit to Lower Raypits Nature reserve, Mark said:
“I have been a member of the Essex Wildlife Trust for many years and so I was particularly pleased to visit one of their newest projects at Lower Raypits. I am very grateful to the SITA Trust for their generous grant, which will help to create a wonderful wetland habitat for birdlife and other creatures to enjoy for generations to come”.