The Gwendraeth Grasslands Project

Authors and delivery partners:

Dr Lizzie Wilberforce, The Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales Charles Morgan, PONT Tim Bevan, National Botanic Garden of Wales Dr Deborah Sazer, The Grasslands Trust

Additional Partners:

Countryside Council for Wales & Environment Agency Wales (now Natural Resources Wales) Carmarthenshire County Council Butterfly Conservation Wales

Report to WREN 18 May 2013

Marsh fritillary © Vaughn Matthews / WTSWW

Corresponding author:

Dr Lizzie Wilberforce The Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales The Nature Centre Fountain Road Tondu Bridgend CF32 0EH

[email protected] 1

Contents Crynodeb Gweithredol ...... 3 Executive Summary ...... 4 1. Introduction and background to the project ...... 5 2. Purpose, aims and outcomes of the project ...... 5 2.1 Stated purpose of the project ...... 5 2.2 Aims and outcomes of the project ...... 6 3. Project delivery ...... 7 3.1 Project structures and administration ...... 7 3.1.1 Gwendraeth Grasslands steering group ...... 7 3.1.2 Gwendraeth Grasslands delivery group ...... 7 3.1.3 Managing project reports and finances ...... 7 3.2 Project sites ...... 7 3.3 Summary of project results against outcomes ...... 8 3.4 Project outcomes by site ...... 11 3.4.1 Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales sites ...... 11 3.4.2 National Botanic Garden of Wales ...... 19 3.4.3 The Grasslands Trust (Carmel) ...... 21 3.4.4 Private Sites ...... 24 3.5 Project financial report ...... 25 3.5.1 Budget reconciliation...... 25 3.5.2 Amendments to budget ...... 28 3.6 Stock leasing ...... 28 3.7 Additional project delivery items ...... 29 3.7.1 Shared equipment ...... 29 3.7.2 Training ...... 30 3.8 Project publicity ...... 30 4. Discussion ...... 30 4.1 Added value ...... 30 4.2 Lessons learned...... 31 4.3 Next steps ...... 33 4.4 Conclusion ...... 34

Crynodeb Gweithredol

Cyflawnwyd Prosiect Glaswelltiroedd Gwendraeth ar y cyd gan Ymddiriedolaeth Natur De a Gorllewin Cymru, PONT, yr Ymddiriedolaeth Glaswelltiroedd a Gardd Fotaneg Genedlaethol Cymru. Cafwyd cymorth ychwanegol gan Gyngor Cefn Gwlad Cymru, Asiantaeth yr Amgylchedd, Cyngor Sir Caerfyrddin a Chadwraeth Gloÿnnod Byw Cymru. Fe’i hariannwyd gan WREN.

Derbyniwyd cyfanswm o £139,711 tuag at y prosiect gan WREN, ynghyd â chyfraniadau trydydd parti gan Gyngor Cefn Gwlad Cymru ac Asiantaeth yr Amgylchedd Cymru.

Gweithredwyd y prosiect ar draws nifer o safleoedd cyswllt (gwarchodfeydd natur), rhai â dynodiadau statudol (Safleoedd o Ddiddordeb Gwyddonol Arbennig, Gwarchodfeydd Natur Genedlaethol, Ardaloedd Cadwraeth Arbennig) a nifer o safleoedd preifat er mwyn sicrhau rheolaeth fuddiol ar gyfer dros 100 hectar o gynefinoedd glaswellt y gweunydd a phorfa frwynog a chynefinoedd gwlyptir eraill yn ne Sir Gaerfyrddin. Ym mhob achos, y bygythiad a nodwyd mewn perthynas ag ansawdd a maint cynefin oedd tan-reolaeth. Ymhlith y gwaith a wnaed, roedd gosod seilwaith pori cadwraethol megis ffensio a chyflenwadau dŵr, cael gwared ar brysgwydd ymledol a llystyfiant arall a oedd wedi gordyfu a chyflwyno strategaeth bori cadwraethol.

Ar ddiwedd y prosiect, a barodd am ddwy flynedd, ym mis Ebrill 2013, rhoddwyd strategaethau pori cadwraethol ar waith a chafwyd ymrwymiad i barhau â’r strategaethau hyn ar bob un o safleoedd y prosiect.

Trwy hyn mae’r prosiect yn ychwanegu 100 ha o gynefin wedi’i adfer at dargedau’r Cynllun Gweithredu Bioamrywiaeth Lleol ar gyfer glaswellt y gweunydd a phorfa frwynog yn Sir Gaerfyrddin.

Executive Summary

The Gwendraeth Grasslands project was delivered by a partnership of The Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales, PONT, The Grasslands Trust and the National Botanic Garden of Wales. Additional support was received from the Countryside Council for Wales, Environment Agency, Carmarthenshire County Council and Butterfly Conservation Wales. It was funded by WREN.

The total project award was £139,711 from WREN with third party contributions from the Countryside Council for Wales and Environment Agency Wales.

The project worked across a number of partner sites (nature reserves), some with statutory designations (SSSI, NNR, SAC) and a number of private sites to secure the favourable management of over 100 hectares of purple moor grass and rush pasture and other wetland habitats in south Carmarthenshire. In all cases the identified threat to habitat quality and quantity was under management. Work delivered included the installation of conservation grazing infrastructure such as fencing and water supplies, the removal of invading scrub and other rank vegetation and the introduction of a conservation grazing strategy.

At the end of the two year project in April 2013, conservation grazing strategies were implemented and a commitment to continue them secured on all project sites.

The project thereby contributes 100 ha of habitat restoration towards LBAP targets for purple moor grass and rush pasture in Carmarthenshire.

1. Introduction and background to the project

The concept of the Gwendraeth Grasslands project originally came about as a result of separate applications to WREN’s Biodiversity Action Fund made by The Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales (WTSWW) and the National Botanic Garden of Wales (NBGW) for relatively similar projects aiming to address the management needs of their respective marshy grassland and wetland habitats in Carmarthenshire.

Marshy grassland is recognised as an important feature of the Carmarthenshire landscape, with the county being a stronghold for this habitat and its associated species, such as the marsh fritillary, in a Welsh, UK and European context.

A more joined up approach was requested, which resulted in a meeting between a much wider range of project partners also including PONT, The Grasslands Trust, Butterfly Conservation Wales, Carmarthenshire County Council’s biodiversity officer and private landowners. A partnership funding approach was subsequently made to WREN, with WTSWW making the application on behalf of the partnership, with assistance from PONT. The partnership was successfully awarded £139,711 by WREN in 2010. The Third Party Contribution was kindly provided by Environment Agency Wales and the Countryside Council for Wales (both now part of Natural Resources Wales), both of whom also contributed to the final project development and site prioritisation exercise.

2. Purpose, aims and outcomes of the project

2.1 Stated purpose of the project The stated purpose of the Gwendraeth Grasslands project was to bring 100 ha of purple moor grass, rhos pasture and other associated habitats under appropriate management in the Gwendraeth area of south Carmarthenshire. This included aims within the contract with WREN as follows:

 To bring 100 ha of purple moor grass, rhos pasture and other associated habitats under appropriate management across 7 sites, enabling associated species to thrive

 To ensure maintenance conservation management is continued beyond the life of the project

 To provide access to the project sites where Rights of Way exist

 To ensure lawful use

 To provide equal opportunities

2.2 Aims and outcomes of the project This stated purpose was to be delivered through a combination of capital works to the identified land to provide the necessary infrastructure and investment to permit sustainable management, and by securing a commitment from all the landowners involved to sustain this appropriate management beyond the lifespan of the funding. This was laid out in more detail in the aims and objectives supplied to WREN as part of the application process.

The aims and outcomes of the project were agreed as follows:

Physical management to improve the condition of the habitats so that we can meet Aim 1 the LBAP targets identified

Excess scrub and other vegetation cut and removed from at least 30 hectares of Outcome 1 sites within the project

Aim 2 Installation of infrastructure on each site to enable grazing to take place

At least 7 sites made secure through erection of at least 4km of stock-proof fences and gates Outcome 2 Grazing infrastructure in place at each site, including at least 3 water troughs and at least 4 corrals

Introduction of grazing animals to ensure continued good management of the Aim 3 habitats

Appropriate grazing animals sourced, at least 10 cattle and 10 ponies Outcome 3 Favourable management implemented on each site by the end of 2 years

Aim 4 Signing of management agreements to ensure continued aftercare

Outcome 4 7 Management agreements and grazing strategies in place by the end of 2 years

Aim 5 Monitoring of habitat condition to ensure targets met

Habitat condition guide produced as part of the management agreements

Visits to each site made by the project partners to assess the impact on the habitats Outcome 5 made by this project

Report written following habitat monitoring and larval web survey contract

3. Project delivery

3.1 Project structures and administration

3.1.1 Gwendraeth Grasslands steering group The project plan and milestones laid out the requirement that a steering group be established. This was undertaken and the steering group met for the first time on 28 March 2011. During the course of the project, the steering group met four times. The steering group comprised WTSWW, NBGW, PONT, The Grasslands Trust, CCW, EAW, Butterfly Conservation Wales and Carmarthenshire County Council. The steering group oversaw the direction and delivery of the project against its milestones and agreed budgets. The steering group worked under Terms of Reference agreed by the group at project commencement.

3.1.2 Gwendraeth Grasslands delivery group A need was also identified for the key delivery partners to meet more frequently than the wider steering group, in order to discuss and co-ordinate details of delivery. The delivery group comprised WTSWW, PONT, NBGW and the Grasslands Trust. This group met for the first time in May 2011 and met a total of three times during the project lifespan.

3.1.3 Managing project reports and finances The application for funding was in the name of WTSWW on behalf of the partnership, so overall financial management, claim submission and reporting was led by WTSWW. The other delivery partners (NBGW, The Grasslands Trust and PONT on behalf of privately owned sites) contributed to the claiming and reporting processes for their respective actions. A total of eight claims were submitted over the two years of the project as laid out in the grant contract.

3.2 Project sites The original intention was to deliver the Gwendraeth Grasslands across seven sites for which permission had already been secured to deliver appropriate management:

 Carmel National Nature Reserve (The Grasslands Trust)

 Waun Las National Nature Reserve (NBWG)

 Ffrwd Farm Mire SSSI (WTSWW, Llanelli Naturalists)

 Rhos Cefn Bryn (WTSWW)

 Cencoed Uchaf (privately owned)

 Tyreithin (privately owned)

 Rhosydd Cynhendre (privately owned)

However, during the process of delivery there was some alteration in the composition of the privately owned land which involved one site being dropped due to the owners not willing to enter all the identified land into the scheme. This was done in consultation with WREN. The target total area was still reached as the remaining private sites contributed a greater area of land than originally anticipated.

3.3 Summary of project results against outcomes

The overall results of the project are summarised in this section against the stated outcomes of the project as listed in section 2.2.

Outcome 1: Excess scrub and other vegetation cut and removed from at least 30 hectares of sites within the project

Outcome status: achieved

Ffrwd Farm Mire 20 ha Excess scrub removed and rank vegetation cut and collected by contractor

Rhos Cefn Bryn 7 ha Excess scrub removed

NBGW 5 ha Willow and scrub cleared from most overgrown marshy grassland at Waun las NNR

Outcome 2a: At least 7 sites made secure through erection of at least 4km of stock-proof fences and gates

Outcome status: achieved

7.8 km fencing and associated infrastructure across 6 sites- one site fewer than anticipated due to change in private site engagement, but target length exceeded.

Stock-proof fencing has been installed at Rhos Cefn Bryn, Ffrwd Farm Mire, Carmel, the National Botanic Garden of Wales, and on both private sites (Tir Eithin and Rhosydd Cynhendre).

Ffrwd Farm Mire 1.29 km Fencing and gates

Rhos Cefn Bryn 1.38 km Fencing and gates

Carmel 0.5 km Fencing made stockproof and gates installed

NBGW 3.0 km Fencing erected on Waun las NNR with 5 new 12 foot gates for improved cattle access.

Tir Eithin 1.1km 3 strand barbed wire installed by hand

Ty Mawr (Rhosydd 0.6km 3 strand barbed wire and 1 sleeper bridge Cynhendre)

Outcome 2b: Grazing infrastructure in place at each site, including at least 3 water troughs and at least 4 corrals

Outcome status: achieved

The aims were achieved via a slightly altered methods and outcomes. Seven water troughs were installed. A mobile handling facility was purchased as an alternative to the proposed corrals.

Water troughs have been installed at the NBGW, Carmel and on one of the private sites. Agreed transfer of funds at the end of the project also allowed work to secure the water supply at Rhos Cefn Bryn which included two new water troughs.

Rhos Cefn Bryn 2 water troughs set, plumbed & secured

Carmel 1 water trough installed and plumbed to existing supply

NBGW 3 new concrete cattle water troughs installed with 450 metres of underground water pipe to connect up troughs to existing water supply.

Tir Eithin 1 water trough and required piping installed.

On the private sites no corrals were installed due to the purchase of mobile cattle handling facility for use by all the project partners, as a more cost effective and flexible solution to stock handling needs. This alteration was agreed in advance with WREN.

Outcome 3a: Appropriate grazing animals sourced, at least 10 cattle and 10 ponies

Outcome status: achieved

Outcome was delivered but by alternative means. Appropriate grazing has been secured on all sites but fewer animals were sourced as one private site has sought to build up its own herd (details below).

Carmel 2 ponies sourced and grazing southern compartments

Tir Eithin 1 Welsh Black bull purchase and lease to owner to enable appropriate cattle grazing numbers to be built up.

Ty Mawr 1 Traditional Hereford Bull and 4 heifers purchased to replace a herd of Simmentals.

Outcome 3b: Favourable management implemented on each site by the end of 2 years

Outcome status: achieved.

NBGW has on average 50 head of Welsh black cattle to graze the NNR. This is sufficient to meet their grazing needs at the low stocking rates required on such sensitive grasslands. In very favourable growing years they will now be in a position to keep back more breeding stock to swell the numbers.

WTSWW has an annual grazing licence agreement with a local grazier to graze both Rhos Cefn Bryn and Ffrwd Farm Mire with cattle. Scrub control has been undertaken on both sites, and in combination with the cut and collect work at Ffrwd and new infrastructure at both sites, make this grazing possible and effective. This will provide sustainable management for future years.

At Carmel the newly stock-proof boundary and water supply have made grazing possible in areas where it was not possible before and secured long term favourable management across the site.

At both private sites, cattle grazing has now been implemented. However, results from the monitoring report show the sites were slightly overgrazed in their first management season (largely a result of atypical weather), so both landowners will be revisited prior to grazing starts next year to remind them of the outcomes required.

Outcome 4: 7 Management agreements and grazing strategies in place by the end of 2 years

Outcome status: achieved

Partner sites At the four partner sites (Carmel, NBGW, Rhos Cefn Bryn and Ffrwd Farm Mire) a formal management agreement is not relevant as sympathetic management already forms part of the organisations’ charitable objectives and site management plans. However appropriate grazing strategies are now in place in all sites.

Private sites Both private sites now have leasing agreements and integral to those agreements are grazing strategies and required grazing outcomes that the leased conservation stock must achieve.

Outcome 5a: Habitat condition guide produced as part of the management agreements

Outcome status: achieved

Instead of developing condition guidance in addition to that currently existing, it was decided for the private sites to use the existing Natural England rhos pasture pictorial guidance, which was attached to the leasing agreements.

Outcome 5b: Visits to each site made by the project partners to assess the impact on the habitats made by this project

Outcome status: Achieved

All sites have been visited by relevant partners. Some sites (Rhos Cefn Bryn, Ffrwd Farm Mire, Carmel, National Botanic Gardens) are managed and monitored by partners themselves. Privately owned sites have all been visited by PONT. Further, sites have been visited by Butterfly Conservation Wales to assess impacts (see 5c below) and in some cases by CCW (now Natural Resources Wales).

Outcome 5c: Report written following habitat monitoring and larval web survey contract

Outcome status: achieved

A report has been produced by Butterfly Conservation Wales. The summer of 2012, when the monitoring was undertaken, was unfortunately atypical in being extremely wet. However, the monitoring was successfully undertaken and the report provides recommendations as well as reporting impacts.

3.4 Project outcomes by site

3.4.1 Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales sites 3.4.1.1 Ffrwd Farm Mire

Ffrwd Farm Mire forms part of the Gwernydd Penbre SSSI near Pembrey in south Carmarthenshire. At around 20 ha in size it is mostly owned by WTSWW, with a small section being owned by the Llanelli Naturalists. The site is currently managed by WTSWW as a single nature reserve on behalf of both organisations but with liaison between the two groups informing management.

Planned works

Works planned for Ffrwd Farm Mire included:

1. Botanical survey (£3600)

2. Fencing (£8600)

3. Cut and collect of rank vegetation (£4380)

4. Small mammal survey

5. Dormouse survey

6. Photographic monitoring

7. Flytipping removal

8. Scrub clearance

Delivery

During the course of the two year project, the following works were delivered:

1. Botanical survey. Budget: £3600. Actual cost: £2160. Originally this was to be contracted out, but CCW were able to undertake a thorough baseline Phase II survey of Ffrwd Farm Mire as part of their contribution to the project. The funds were therefore transferred to complete a similar exercise on Rhos Cefn Bryn instead, which cost only £2160, being a smaller site.

Left: National Vegetation Classification map (vegetation communities) of Ffrwd Farm Mire SSSI prior to delivery of works under the Gwendraeth Grasslands project (2009)

2. Fencing. Budget: £8600. Actual cost: £8500.

Around 1300m total of fencing was replaced by contractors (see photos below), securing WTSWW’s ability to graze the marshy grassland and reedbed (20 ha)

Left: new fencing being installed at Ffrwd Farm Mire SSSI’s southern boundary by Ant Hartley, local contractor.

3. Cut and collect of rank vegetation. Budget: £4380. Actual cost: £4800.

The cut and collect process proved very costly even compared to estimates and quotes used to develop the grant application. The delivery was also held up by exceptionally wet summers making the ground impossible to access with the necessary machinery. The work was finally delivered in late summer 2012 by a local contractor, Commons Vision. Both main areas of marshy grassland were successfully cut and the cut material piled in locations agreed with CCW where they now provide good habitat for the site’s resident reptile population.

Left: Waun Cae Philip field before cutting, May 2012. Right: after cutting, Sept 2012.

4. Small mammal survey and dormouse survey

These elements were undertaken by WTSWW staff and volunteers. Dormouse boxes present across the site were monitored. No dormice were found in the boxes during monitoring, but efforts continue with this regard as they were found in adjacent reedbed during the two years of the project. Small mammal monitoring recorded woodmice, and evidence of harvest mice and shrews.

5. Photographic monitoring

Ongoing photographic monitoring by WTSWW staff has and will continue to document the changes in the reserve in response to management

6. Flytipping removal

Ffrwd Farm Mire has suffered from fly tipping and rubbish accumulation as result of its secluded location combined with a long boundary meeting a quiet roadside. Rubbish was removed on three occasions during the lifetime of the project by a combination of WTSWW staff and volunteers. This element of the project received in kind support from Carmarthenshire’s Tidy Towns team, who assisted with the disposal of waste which included a large number of fly-tipped tyres.

Left: WTSWW volunteers Allan Williams and Geoff Powell with just one batch of fly-tipped waste removed from Ffrwd Farm Mire, in 2012.

7. Scrub clearance.

Scrub clearance was undertaken under dormouse licences from Welsh Government and with SSSI consent from CCW, by WTSWW staff with support from volunteers. 14

During the lifetime of the project this work was undertaken over a total of eight days and involving 66 volunteer person days.

Left: WTSWW volunteers clear scrub in the reedbed at Ffrwd Farm Mire, September 2011

How the gains will be sustained

In the long term, the sustainable management of Ffrwd Farm Mire will continue because conservation grazing has been made possible by the combination of fencing and removal of rank vegetation such as soft rush, and woody scrub such as willow. WTSWW has secured a new S15 agreement with CCW/NRW which will continue to support this sympathetic management and any maintenance costs. WTSWW will continue to fundraise to continue efforts as required in the monitoring of dormice and the removal of any future fly tipping. The established volunteer team continue to play a key role in the site’s future management, particularly with rotational scrub management.

3.4.1.2 Rhos Cefn Bryn

Rhos Cefn Bryn is an undesignated 6ha nature reserve near Llannon in south Carmarthenshire. Despite its lack of designations it holds important populations of both dormice (part of PTES’s National Dormouse Monitoring Programme) and marsh fritillary butterfly (monitored by WTSWW and data contributed to Butterfly Conservation’s national trends dataset). Together its two fields comprise 6 ha of open habitats (rhos pasture) with thick, diverse hedgerows and a small wooded copse.

Planned works

Works planned for Rhos Cefn Bryn included:

1. Installation of new fencing and gates

2. Scrub control

Delivery

Additional benefits were delivered at Rhos Cefn Bryn: as well as the fencing, a botanical survey was completed with the money saved at Ffrwd intended for the same purpose. In addition, consent was received from WREN in 2013 to transfer project underspend to improve the water supply so critical to sustainable management of the site.

1. Fencing. Budget: £8800. Actual cost: £5820.48

It was anticipated that 1300m of fencing would be replaced, the final total was £1381m including additional gates, stiles etc. This replaced seriously damaged fencing that was no longer stock proof. The site was very wet and the contractor used specialist machinery that caused no damage to the ground and flora.

Left: local contractor Alistair Butler bringing fenceposts on to Rhos Cefn Bryn on tracked vehicle to reduce impact. Right: new fence in situ.

Costs were kept low by WTSWW staff and volunteers undertaking the deconstruction and removal of the old fence so that the contractors were only required to install the new one.

2. Scrub control

This work was undertaken by a combination of WTSWW staff and volunteers. Some scrub control was required prior to the replacement of the fencing, to permit access. Scattered scrub invading the grassland was also removed and burned. All work was completed under a dormouse licence from CCW. During the lifetime of the project this work totalled twelve work days and around 52 volunteer days were contributed.

Left: WTSWW volunteers clearing scrub from the marshy grassland to benefit the habitat for marsh fritillaries and to secure access to the fence line prior to its replacement by contractors

3. Marsh fritillary monitoring

Marsh fritillary monitoring was undertaken each year by WTSWW staff and volunteers in the autumn by undertaking a complete sweep of suitable habitat and counting larvae. Unfortunately the weather in both 2011 and 2012 proved poor for marsh fritillaries but we hope that numbers will improve, with better weather in 2013 and improved habitat management as a result of this project. Six larval webs were recorded in 2011 and two in 2012. This reduction probably partly reflects poor survey conditions as the peak count of adult butterflies in 2012 (12) is the highest for six years.

Left: WTSWW volunteers Geoff Powell and Richard Pond searching for marsh fritillary larvae, Sept 2012

4. Improvements to water supply and access: Budget: £0. Actual spend: £4,000

A request to transfer funds from areas of underspend to address the water supply at this site were made after a need was recognised to dramatically improve the access and water supply to support grazing.

Whilst a water supply already existed at the site, the troughs were small, plastic and light and previous livestock had severely poached the area around them. This was damaging the habitat and also making the troughs non-functional, as the poaching caused the troughs to tilt and therefore constantly leak without the ballcock being able to shut off the supply. Their location near the gates was also causing severe poaching at the field access points, which makes the management of livestock difficult, especially in wet ground conditions.

Left: original troughs. Even after a year’s recovery, evidence of poaching is still visible, and the trough has been gradually sunk low into the marshy grassland.

Left: showing old poaching damage around the access point, and the damage to the culvert making access for livestock management difficult and destabilising the gate infrastructure (water poured across this access point after rain). Poaching after periods of grazing was sufficiently severe to make this gateway almost impassable on foot.

Above left: the new entrance gateway, set back with new culvert to allow better access by vehicles and livestock without causing damage. Above right: new better quality trough installed with area of stone to reduce poaching damage to the marshy grassland

5. Vegetation survey. Budget: £0. Actual spend: £2160 (transferred from Ffrwd budget)

A botanical survey was undertaken by the county BSBI recorder through his consultancy business. The first thorough baseline habitat survey of the reserve was consequently completed.

Above: Phase II (NVC) vegetation map and target notes produced by Richard Pryce

How the gains will be sustained

WTSWW has a very active volunteer group now engaged in managing this site and sustainable cattle grazing is now in place within the management plan and agreed grazing strategy. This will secure future sustained positive management and volunteers will be able to undertake rotational scrub control as required.

3.4.2 National Botanic Garden of Wales

Planned works

1. Refencing of large areas of pasture within Waun las NNR to allow better access for cattle grazing and for the cattle to distribute plant seeds over large areas. Estimated 3350 metres of fence at a cost of £20,100 to create 5 new blocks of rhos pasture all with cattle proof boundaries

2. Water troughs to be installed into three of the new fenced areas with no clean water and to allow for the fencing of stream-sides to prevent cattle access and to prevent them sharing water with neighbouring farms. Provision of £1,500 for the purchase and installation of the troughs.

3. Several areas assigned cutting and the removal of arisings to reduce biomass, control coarse grasses and rushes and encourage cattle grazing. There was a need for specialist machinery that can cut and collect on these environmentally sensitive and wet grasslands. Planned area of 7.36 hectares was the most rank and in need of cutting most urgently. Provision of £4,380 to complete necessary cut and collect works.

4. Annual summer grazing of these areas by NBGW’s own Welsh Black cattle.

Delivery

1. Fencing. Budget £20,100. Actual spend £14,020.58

Approximately 3 km of fencing completed the boundaries of the 5 new blocks of rhos pasture and isolated the cattle from stream-sides. For longevity it was decided to use split oak posts that had the additional advantage of not needing chemical preservatives. Most of the fencing was completed by NBGW staff using high tensile wire to reduce the number of posts required. In the wettest part of the reserve, on the southern extremity, specialist contractors were used as the ground conditions required specialist equipment to avoid plant and soil damage. A J Butler Contracting installed just over 600 metres of fence using specialist tracked and low ground pressure machinery.

Left: new fencing, gates and water trough at NBGW. Below: fencing work underway

2. Water supply. Budget: £1,500. Actual spend: £1,443.66

Concrete water troughs were chosen as very robust for use by cattle and three were purchased with all necessary fittings and water pipe to link up to the existing water supply system on the NNR. 450 metres of water pipe was installed using a mole plough to reduce plant and soil disturbance. The work was carried out by Hemmings Plant Hire, Llandeilo.

3. Cut & Collect. Budget: £4,380. Actual spend: £4,800

The cut and collect work to control the rank vegetation was completed by AJ Butler Contracting over August 2011 in a relatively dry period. The ground conditions were still very soft and needed low ground pressure machinery to prevent soil damage. The arisings were heaped up in an area away from the important habitats. Due to the lack of previous grazing there was also considerable willow invasion which was first removed by chainsaw operators before being chipped into the arisings. Costs had risen from the original quotes so it was difficult to complete all the work within the budget. An area of 5 hectares was completed as the most in need and representing the best example of marshy grassland on the reserve. Weather conditions prevented further works into the autumn of 2011.

Left: AJB Contracting undertaking the cut and collect work in the marshy grassland

How the gains will be sustained

The management of these grassland areas requires the removal of strong competitor plants which will otherwise dominate the more sensitive stress tolerating plants. The most effective approach will be to graze these grasslands with cattle particularly in the mid to late summer. NBGW have been building on their numbers of Welsh Black cattle since the initial purchase of a small herd in 2008. They now have sufficient numbers to graze the reserve at the low stocking rates required. Cattle grazing is a cheaper and more sustainable option (compared to mechanical means) for the long term management of these wet, marshy grassland areas.

3.4.3 The Grasslands Trust (Carmel)

Planned works

Carmel is an NNR and Special Area of Conservation (SAC) underpinned by SSSI status. The land included in this project comprised the 12 ha of the SAC that was under the management control of the Grasslands Trust at the time of the project application and delivery. The land comprises several discrete parcels and includes purple moor grass and rush pasture, lowland heath, bracken, acid grassland, unimproved and semi-improved grassland areas.

Works planned for Carmel included:

1. Purchase of electric fencing (£868) 2. Purchase of livestock trailer (£2,500) 3. Fencing (£2,700) 4. Water supply (£3,500) 5. Stock handling facility (£10,000)

Delivery

1. Purchase of electric fencing. Budget £868. Actual spend £0 This project was abandoned due to a significant number of recent thefts on site of gates and other infrastructure, leading to fears that any portable electrical fence materials might suffer the same fate. With WREN’s agreement these funds were transferred to other areas of work on Carmel (fixed fencing and gates) that contribute to the same outcome.

2. Purchase of livestock trailer. Budget £2,500. Actual spend £2,550 With WREN’s consent this project was altered to allow the purchase of a flat bed trailer rather than a livestock trailer. In the end this purchase was completed by the National Botanic Garden of Wales rather than the Grasslands Trust (see section 4.2 for explanation) towards the end of the project.

3. Fencing Budget: £2,700. Actual spend: £3,062.40 Fencing was repaired and installed to make all grazing compartments stock-proof; this involved the installation of a number of gates as well to ensure a secure boundary.

Left: new oak gate (one of four) installed to secure a stockproof boundary at Carmel

Left: new kissing gate ensuring no stock can escape the site and reach the A-road, where previously there was no barrier.

4. Water supply Budget: £3,500. Actual spend: £1,084.20 A water trough in the Pant y Castell compartment was installed but as part of the fencing contract so not costed separately here. In Garn South, a 400 gallon plastic water trough was installed on hard core.

Left: new water trough in the Pant y Castell compartment at Carmel

5. Stock handling facility. Budget: £10,000. Actual spend: £13,044 It was decided to purchase a mobile livestock handling facility. This was more expensive than a fixed facility and the difference in cost was accommodated by underspend elsewhere within the Carmel budgets as outlined above. This change in specification allowed a more versatile acquisition which will continue to facilitate sustainable management by project partners across a wider range of land parcels than a fixed facility at Carmel (single parcel) would have permitted.

How the gains will be sustained

Livestock grazing was introduced for the first time in 2012 to some parts of Carmel. In other areas where grazing had previously occurring this was secured for the longer term by ensuring infrastructure was fit for purpose.

Left: Harry and Sidan arrive at the Garn South compartment of Carmel to begin conservation grazing

Unfortunately in the autumn of 2012, The Grasslands Trust went into liquidation. This was not foreseen either by the Grasslands Trust’s own local staff or any of the partners in the Gwendraeth Grasslands project.

However, in spring 2013, the land leased to The Grasslands Trust by Tarmac, was purchased by CCW. WTSWW are currently negotiating a lease of this land from Natural Resources Wales (NRW, previously CCW) with the intention that the work will be continued, working to the same vision and management plan as previously. 23

The maintenance of the gains made under the Gwendraeth Grasslands project will therefore be through NRW and WTSWW and through maintenance of the conservation grazing initiated, and the core staff and volunteer efforts of WTSWW. The Gwendraeth Grasslands ponies from Carmel are currently being held by PONT until the grazing can resume, and all mobile equipment continues to be held and shared by the remaining project partners. See section 4.2 for more details.

3.4.4 Private Sites Planned works

Three private sites were initially included in the project, all having previously been identified by ADAS survey work under contract to CCW, as priority marsh fritillary habitat. The sites were Tir Eithin, a farm close to Mynydd Llangynderyn SSSI, Ty Mawr, a farm close to Fiveways in Carmarthenshire, and Cencoed Uchaf.

The budget for works planned for the private sites included:

1. Infrastructure and vegetation control works £38,400

2. Stock leasing £15,000

Delivery

Tir Eithin

A total of 1100 metres of fencing were installed with a water trough to enable more targeted and efficient grazing of the areas of habitat with a bull being purchased to enable more native breed cattle to be sired. This WREN funded project ran in the same period with a project funded by CWM Environmental (Grantscape) and Aggregates Levy funding to improve the condition and ability of commoners to manage a common (Mynydd Llangynderyn SSSI) for the marsh fritillary. Tir Eithin as well has having significant habitat in its own right will be able to use the grazing now available on Mynydd Llangynderyn so as to reduce and target grazing on its own rhos pasture, and through being involved in two projects expand the area of marsh fritillary habitat to be sustainably managed in the future.

Infrastructure and vegetation control budget spent: £9,397.60 Stock leasing budget spent: £2,000

Left: Welsh Black Bull, Tir Eithin

Ty Mawr

600 metres of fencing was installed to allow more appropriate and targeted grazing to be carried out, and a herd of traditional Herefords purchased as they would graze the habitat more appropriately that the existing herd of Simmentals.

Left- traditional Hereford Bull – Ty Mawr

Infrastructure and vegetation control budget spent: £4,690.50 Stock leasing budget spent: £8,106

How the gains will be sustained

The Welsh Black bull at Tir Eithin has sired his first calves so as to start expanding the herd and the for the next 5 years the grazing outcomes should be delivered as if not the leased stock will be removed. The Herefords starting grazing at Ty Mawr this spring so grazing outcomes should begin to be delivered.

3.5 Project financial report In total the project was awarded up to £139,711.00 by WREN. The final project cost, with all outcomes achieved, was £101,507.01. Of this £100,407 were funded by WREN and £1,100 the agreed contribution from WTSWW.

3.5.1 Budget reconciliation

The table below provides a complete budget reconciliation against project headings showing individual items of expenditure, and the quarters in which they were claimed.

Project Totals: Budget Gwendraeth Total WTSWW Grasslands Costs (£) (£) WREN (£) Date Subtotal Actual expenditure item Total claimed (actuals) Mapinfo licence 1500 1100 400 Exegesis invoice £1,498.80 15/06/2011 £1,498.80 Grazing infrastructure and contractors

Fencing by contractor 39600 39600 NBGW staff time £1,531.37 15/03/2012 £29,442.15 John Davies, Carmel £1,800.00 15/03/2012 Fence materials for NBGW £2,402.05 15/03/2012 Gates, fittings etc Carmel £1,262.40 15/06/2012 Heartwood oak posts NBGW £337.50 15/06/2012 Melleys fixings NBGW £1,327.45 15/06/2012 Melleys strainers NBGW £471.10 15/06/2012 Melleys strainers NBGW £202.96 15/06/2012 NBGW estate curator time £938.26 15/06/2012 NBGW estate worker time £354.24 15/06/2012 RCB: AJB contracting £5,820.48 15/09/2012 Ffrwd: Ant Hartley £8,500.00 15/09/2012 NBGW estate curator time £536.16 15/09/2012 NBGW estate worker time £649.44 15/09/2012 NBGW estate worker time £354.24 15/09/2012 NBGW estate curator time £348.50 15/12/2012 NBGW estate worker time £369.00 15/12/2012 Fencing materials NBGW £987.00 15/12/2012 NBGW- AJB contracting £1,250.00 30/04/2013 Rank vegetation cutting and removal by contractor 8760 8760 NBGW: AJB contracting £4,000.00 02/12/2011 £8,800.00 Ffrwd: Commons Vision £4,800.00 15/09/2012 Water provision 5000 5000 NBGW £332.86 15/03/2012 £4,912.86 NBGW £580.00 15/12/2012 RCB: AJB contracting £4,000.00 30/04/2013 Gates 600 600 Included within fencing £0.00 N/A £0.00 Other infrastructure for stock handling 10000 10000 Mobile cattle crush £13,044.00 15/09/2012 £13,044.00 Sub total 63960 £56,199.01 Survey/monitoring Monitoring by contractor including larval web survey for Butterfly Conservation marsh fritillary 3450 3450 Wales £4,140.00 30/04/2013 £4,140.00 Botanical surveys by contractor 3600 3600 RCB: Richard Pryce Eco £2,160.00 02/12/2011 £2,160.00 Sub total 7050 £6,300.00 Stock leasing 15000 15000 Welsh Black Bull £2,000.00 15/03/2012 £10,492.39 Pony transfer passport £10.00 15/06/2012 Pony handling equipment £28.24 15/06/2012 Pony handling information £48.15 15/06/2012 Ponies £300.00 15/06/2012 Stock leasing- haulage £576.00 15/12/2012 Stock leasing- bull £1,840.00 15/12/2012 Ty Mawr cattle £5,600.00 15/12/2012 26

Pedigree transfer £90.00 30/04/2013 Training Mapinfo 300 300 PONT £474.00 15/12/2012 £474.00 Conservation grazing management 500 500 SNPA £418.00 15/09/2013 £418.00 Lookering 600 600 £0.00 N/A £0.00 Sub total 1400 £892.00 Health & safety Helmet & visor 70 70 Stanton hope invoice £110.40 15/06/2011 £110.40 Gloves 50 50 Stanton hope invoice £62.28 15/06/2011 £62.28 Work boots 80 80 ARCO sales invoice £64.80 15/06/2011 £64.80 Sub total 200 £237.48 Equipment Electric fencing 868 868 £0.00 N/A £0.00 Livestock trailer 2500 2500 £2,550.00 30/04/2013 £2,550.00 Brushcutter & harness 1000 1000 Stanton hope invoice £879.27 15/06/2011 £879.27 Rakes & forks 220 220 Stanton hope invoice £215.76 15/06/2011 £215.76 Pressure washer Via PONT £487.00 30/04/2013 £487.00 Sub total 4588 £4,132.03 Volunteer subsistence 300 300 £0.00 N/A £0.00 Travel 600 600 PONT £45.00 15/06/2011 £630.22 WTSWW £5.60 15/06/2011 WTSWW £38.40 09/10/2011 WTSWW £27.20 02/12/2011 PONT £61.00 15/03/2012 WTSWW £22.80 15/03/2012 Grasslands Trust £28.80 15/03/2012 PONT £86.60 15/06/2012 WTSWW £90.20 15/06/2012 WTSWW £54.00 15/09/2012 WTSWW £111.20 15/12/2012 PONT £32.80 15/12/2012 The Grasslands Trust £11.50 15/12/2012 WTSWW £15.12 30/04/2013 Salary WTSWW CEO 1129.44 1129.44 WTSWW CM time £472.95 15/03/2012 £1,466.15 WTSWW CM time £709.43 15/12/2012 WTSWW CM time £283.77 30/04/2013 WTSWW Conservation Manager 2481.6 2481.6 WTSWW CM time £327.68 15/06/2011 £2,030.32 WTSWW CM time £520.25 09/10/2011 WTSWW CM time £425.66 02/12/2011 WTSWW CM time £520.25 15/06/2012

WTSWW CM time £236.48 15/09/2013 PONT Coordinator 3388.16 3388.32 PONT co-ordinator time £515.31 15/06/2011 £2,719.19 PONT co-ordinator time £152.47 09/10/2011 PONT co-ordinator time £744.04 15/03/2012 PONT co-ordinator time £601.43 15/06/2012 PONT co-ordinator time £38.16 15/09/2012 PONT co-ordinator time £667.78 15/12/2012 Grassland Trust warden Grassland Trust Warden 401.3 401.3 time £401.30 15/03/2012 £401.30 National Botanic Gardens Estates NBGW Estate Curator Manager 412 412 time £214.46 02/12/2011 £420.46 NBGW Estate Curator time £206.00 15/03/2012 Sub total 7812.5 £7,037.42 Work on private sites at £800 per hectare 38400 38400 Fencing via PONT £2,140.50 15/06/2012 £14,087.66 Fencing via PONT £9,000.00 15/06/2012 Cattle crush via PONT £2,550.00 15/12/2012 Water trough £397.16 30/04/2013 Printing and postage of management agreements 400 400 £0.00 £0.00 Project total 141210.5 1500 139710.66 £101,507

3.5.2 Amendments to budget Some amendments to the budget became necessary as projects individually came in over or below budget, and as investigations in the process of delivering the works necessitated small changes to the specifications.

All changes were approved by WREN prior to their implementation. Generally, the redistribution of budgets occurred within the working budgets of the individual partner’s projects so that no other partner was influenced by another’s over- or under-spend. For example, the Grasslands Trust decided that electric fence was not secure (due to local theft rates) and therefore inappropriate at Carmel and transferred these funds instead to fixed fencing and new gates to achieve the same purpose.

Some larger areas of underspend remained nonetheless. These are dealt with in section 4.2 (lessons learned).

3.6 Stock leasing The stock leasing element of the project proved to be very successful. The principles behind this approach were as follows.

The use of grant funding in this way made it possible to support the capital cost of stock acquisition for graziers on the private sites. Under the project terms, PONT 28

bought the relevant stock, then leased these to graziers for a fixed period (between 3-5 years) on a formal lease arrangement. This gave PONT the ownership of the stock while the grazier gets to use the stock to graze and deliver wildlife gain on their land, for a period / periods specified annually during the lease period. The grazier delivers this (and the biodiversity gain outputs associated with the agreed sympathetic grazing strategy) stock but is charged with all aspects of legal welfare and maintenance during the rest of the lease period. If any of the stock get to saleable age or have young, the grazier- if they are not required to maintain the herd number and structure- is allowed to sell them to offset his /her costs in maintaining the stock during the lease period. At all times during the lease period the grazier must maintain a herd or group of similar age and herd structure to those originally leased, to maintain the value of the leased herd to the lessor. At the end of the lease period the grazier may either (a) keep the stock and pay back PONT the market value of the stock at that time- this money is then reinvested in leasing out another herd to deliver wildlife benefit by grazing so maintaining the circle, (b) the grazier may enter a new lease, or (c) or at any time if the grazier has problems the grazier must transport the stock to a reasonable location specified by PONT for them to be used for another lease, or if this is not required transport them to a relevant market so they can be sold and the money returned to PONT so it can reused for another lease arrangement. In this way the capital cost of stock purchase is delayed till a grazier can confirm he / she is happy maintain stock and then deliver wildlife gain over the long term.

Within the Gwendraeth Grasslands project this approach has made it possible for the private landowners to introduce optimal cattle grazing to previously under managed areas of marshy grassland, overcoming barriers of capital investment and perceived risk.

3.7 Additional project delivery items

3.7.1 Shared equipment The project funded the purchase of a number of items of equipment, including:

 Flat bed trailer

 Mobile livestock crush

 Brushcutter, chainsaw and relevant PPE

 Handtools for volunteers

 Power washer and disinfectant

All these items were successfully purchased within agreed budgets. The partners formalised their shared use under a Memorandum of Agreement, the terms of which will extend beyond the life of this project to cover their continued shared use and responsibility for storage, insurance and maintenance. They continue to be key to the delivery of future sustainable habitat management on the partner sites.

3.7.2 Training The project funded one Conservation Grazing training course and one Mapinfo (GIS) training course which improved partners’ ability to manage the sites for the duration of the project and beyond.

3.8 Project publicity Various items of publicity were secured within the lifespan of the project, with more due on completion of the capital works. Publicity to date includes:

 Article in Yr Ardd (NBWG members’ magazine)

 Article in Welsh Wildlife (pan-Wales publication of the Welsh Wildlife Trusts)

 Articles in WTSWW’s electronic newsletter (c. 3000 recipients)

 Article in the Carmarthenshire Biodiversity Partnership newsletter

 Article in Natur Cymru

 Page on PONT website

Further details:

A 1600 word article was written for the promotional magazine, Yr Ardd, produced quarterly for the National Botanic Garden of Wales. As the article was long it was edited into two for publication in the Winter 2012 and Spring 2013 magazines. An abridged article was summarised from this bigger story and published in the Natur Cymru wildlife magazine, Number 46 Spring 2013.

4. Discussion

4.1 Added value Where possible, additional funds were matched to those supplied by WREN to add value to the gains delivered. These include:

 ERDF grant. Funds from the Welsh Government were secured by the Gwendraeth Grasslands partnership- not directly as match for the Gwendraeth Grasslands operations themselves, but as a separate application by the existing partnership, for further operations contributing to the same 30

shared aims. The presence of the strong partnership formed as a result of the Gwendraeth Grasslands project made this possible and secured additional machinery (baler) and interpretation panel (Ffrwd Farm Mire) which adds to and promotes the work of the WREN-funded project

 Tidy Towns / Keep Wales Tidy added an in-kind contribution to the work of the project at Ffrwd Farm Mire by collaborating on the removal of fly-tipped waste and litter. WREN funded WTSWW to undertake the clearance and Tidy Towns / Keep Wales Tidy kindly disposed of the waste collected at no capital cost to the project.

 The Grasslands Trust secured funds from Working With Nature, which allowed them to undertake a scrub clearance programme in the Pant y Castell compartment of Carmel, adding value to the work funded by WREN to introduce grazing to this compartment.

 Butterfly Conservation Wales provided extra funds to WTSWW to replace some additional gates at Rhos Cefn Bryn, adding value to the gates and fencing funded by WREN, to further improve our ability to graze the site (new internal gates).

4.2 Lessons learned

General cost estimations. Rising costs in the time elapsed between quotes for a grant application and the eventual grant implementation can be a problem. This was noticed on some of the contractor elements of this project where the delivery occurred some time after the expiry of the original quote, due to the necessary time required to secure the grant approval and delays due to ground conditions. This could be addressed by a greater level of contingency added to grant for such circumstances.

Weather conditions. Changing weather patterns are universally making grassland restoration works more difficult, particularly as the ideal time period to carry out the work is rather narrow and seasonal. Although weather patterns during the Gwendraeth Grasslands project were exceptional, with an unusually wet summer, running such a grant over a longer period would provide a greater level of flexibility to ensure all the work could be completed. All work was completed within this project over the two years but considerable delays were encountered on the cut and collect work- for example almost a year at Ffrwd Farm Mire as ground conditions were too wet to permit access by the necessary machinery.

The Grasslands Trust. The greatest challenge to this multi-partner project proved to be the unexpected liquidation of The Grasslands Trust in autumn 2012. Although the 31

outcomes are now at the point of resolution, with Carmel secured in sympathetic management as a result of its purchase by CCW, this was a significant and unanticipated risk to the overall project. In a multi-partner project of this kind in the future, where there is a single co-ordinating applicant (in this case WTSWW), we would arrange a more complete written partnership agreement that sets out liabilities and responsibilities in the case of such a liquidation of one of the partners.

Estimating cost of works on private sites. This proved to cost significantly less than anticipated, partly a result of changes in the sites involved in the project and partly due to the kind of works delivered.

Overall the underspend arose because it was possible to get better value from contractors, and also one site which had a projected budget of £13,000 pulled out of the project as they would not put in all the land that the project partners and which WREN required. This change in sites was agreed with WREN at the time. The £800 an acre estimation that was incorporated in the application was based on a similar type of project that Butterfly Conservation carried out in South Wales, and was the figure given by them on asking them for guidance on estimated costs per hectare when this project was being developed by PONT and WTSWW.

In future project partners would apply actual costed works and specs when writing an application and not per hectare figures to ensure more accurate total budgeting.

Contractors vs. in house delivery. One significant change to the NBGW works was the bringing of the fencing largely in house, as agreed by WREN. Rather than paying a contractor to complete the work, the money saved by delivering the fencing using existing staff released enough savings for a much higher standard of material to be used (oak rather than tannerlised softwood) and still be within budget.

It will not always be the case that there is capacity to deliver this scale of work using staff time, and as in the case of NBGW, the most appropriate equipment may sometimes only be available via contractors, but where possible it constitutes better value for money and a higher standard of outcome for the same budget.

Stock leasing. The stock leasing element of the project has been highly successful in terms of outcome delivery, with cattle grazing being secured for private land where it would not have been by other means (i.e. it has supported the landowner to apply appropriate cattle grazing where they would not have attempted it without that support). However this element of the project has also produced a significant underspend. The cost has been less primarily due to the alteration in the makeup of the private land included, but also because one landowner opted to acquire a bull to be able to build his own herd to the required amount to deliver the conservation 32

grazing required, rather than leasing in lots of new stock. Approval was sought from WREN for this approach in November 2011; we were supportive because it represents best practice in multiple ways, including reduced disease risk.

This element has therefore been successfully delivered, but at a reduced cost. As with the private sites funding, project partners would in future expect to make more thorough assessments of specifically what was required on each site and cost the project on that basis, rather than allocating a lump sum, in order to generate a more accurate estimate of required spend.

Risk Analysis. A full and continually updated risk register would help to address some of the above issues and allow potential problems and delays to be flagged up in a timely manner.

4.3 Next steps

Next steps identified by the partner organisations are as follows:

NBGW  Ongoing annual willow control will be needed on the wettest of the marshy grasslands. The low stocking rates used may not be sufficient to prevent re- growth from the cut stumps by cattle grazing.

 Maintenance of cattle numbers at sufficient level to graze all the grasslands on the reserve.

 Investigate joint machinery ownership with WTSWW, PONT, NRW for longer term management of marshy grasslands needing specialist equipment for their management.

WTSWW

 Ongoing rotational scrub control under dormouse licences at both Ffrwd Farm Mire and Rhos Cefn Bryn to maintain extent of the marshy grassland

 Maintenance of cattle numbers under an annual grazing licence

 Investigate application to agri-environment schemes to support management

 Introduce rotational reed cutting management at Ffrwd Farm Mire

 Secure future management of Carmel through working in partnership with NRW and other partners and to take on the vision and management programme begun by the Grasslands Trust. 33

PONT

 Maintain ongoing relationship with stock leasing graziers to ensure grazing outcomes delivered.

 Work with other partners to ensure shared equipment is fully utilised to deliver biodiversity benefit.

4.4 Conclusion

The Gwendraeth Grasslands project, whilst it has suffered some unanticipated setbacks, has been a very successful delivery venture, meeting its aims and objectives whilst coming in significantly under budget.

The approach of working with multiple partners and delivering benefits across multiple sites at a landscape scale, but connected by their ecological features and management needs, has proved very successful. The formation of a strong partnership able to work effectively together and share machinery and knowledge has also proved to be a key benefit of the approach.

It is anticipated that the benefits of this project will continue long after the termination of the funded element, through sustainable management of the land involved and the closer working relationship of the project partners.