Alderney West Coast and Burhou Islands Ramsar Site Management Strategy Version 1 Louise Soanes 1 (Alderney Wildlife Trust) and Helen Booker 2 (RSPB) Date: January 2007 1 Alderney Wildlife Trust, 34 Victoria Street, St Annes, Alderney, GY9 3TA, Channel Islands. 2 The RSPB, SW England Regional Office, Keble House, Southernhay Gardens, Exeter, Devon, EX1 1NT Alderney West Coast and Burhou Islands Ramsar Site Management Strategy Contents Abstract 1 Introduction 1.1 Strategic goals 1.2 Objectives 1.3 Political context of strategy 2 The Alderney west coast and Burhou islands Ramsar site – interest features and their context 2.1 Habitats and flora 2.2 Seabirds 2.2.1 Internationally important species 2.2.2 Nationally important species 2.2.3 Locally important species 2.3 Non-avian fauna 3 An overview of potential factors Ramsar features around Alderney 3.1 Developments and other commercial activities 3.2 Habitat change 3.3 Human disturbance 3.4 Pollution 3.5 Climate change 3.6 Seabird specific factors 3.6.1 Introduced mammalian predators 3.6.2 Native avian predators 3.6.3 Food availability 4 Review of past management and monitoring in and around the Ramsar site 4.1 Marine habitats 4.2 Seabird management 4.2.1 Seabird ringing 4.3 Non-avian species 5 Ramsar site monitoring and management strategy 5.1 Non-avian Ramsar interest features 5.2 Seabirds 5.3 Ramsar Site Management and action plan 6. Education and public relations 7 Costs and resource requirements 8 Project management 2 Alderney West Coast and Burhou Islands Ramsar Site Management Strategy 9 Strategy review 10 Acknowledgments 11 References Figures and Tables Figure 1 : Map of the Alderney Ramsar site Table 1 : Priority seabird populations within the Ramsar site Table 3 : Ramsar monitoring and action plan, Part 1 – Seabirds Table 4: Ramsar monitoring and action plan, Part 2 – Marine habitats and non- avian fauna. Appendices Appendix 1: Seabird populations of the Alderney west coast and Burhou islands Ramsar Site Appendix 2: Seagrass beds UK Habitat Action Plan Appendix 3: Maritime cliffs and slopes UK Habitat Action Plan Appendix 4: Coastal vegetated shingle UK Habitat Action Plan Appendix 5: Ramsar management plan costs . 3 Alderney West Coast and Burhou Islands Ramsar Site Management Strategy Abstract In 2005 Alderney’s West coast and the Burhou Islands were designated as wetlands of worldwide importance. As a participant of the Ramsar Convention the States of Alderney are required to develop a framework for the conservation and wise use of the Ramsar site. On behalf of the States of Alderney this management strategy has been prepared by the Alderney Wildlife Trust and the RSPB with advice and expertise from relevant parties. Seabirds are one of the main reasons for Alderney’s Ramsar designation. Alderney supports regionally, nationally and internationally important populations of seabirds. This plan focuses on developing appropriate monitoring and management plans for the seabirds of Alderney, but also aims to establish regular monitoring of the important habitats and non-avian species present within the site. The establishment of this plan is particularly important in view of the potential effects of the development of tidal power on Alderney’s marine environment. A five year work programme is proposed for the period 2007-2012. It is proposed that the Alderney Wildlife Trust and the RSPB (known from hereon as ‘The Ramsar Managers’) manage the strategy on behalf of the States of Alderney, drawing upon a range of scientific expertise where necessary. The Ramsar Managers will also advise the States with regard to the issuing of licenses for those individuals/groups who apply to the States to carry out research or management work on Alderney’s seabird populations or within the Ramsar site. However, the responsibility for granting the licence will remain with the States of Alderney. This will ensure the strategy’s objectives are adhered to and any environmental management within the site is carried out appropriately. Progress against delivering the strategy objectives will be annually reviewed, and the strategy itself reviewed in 2012. 4 Alderney West Coast and Burhou Islands Ramsar Site Management Strategy 1 Introduction The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands was adopted in Ramsar, Iran, in February 1971 to provide a framework for action and international co-operation for the wise use of wetlands and their resources. The UK ratified the Convention in 1976, extending this to its overseas territories and crown dependencies where Ramsar often provides the only policy mechanism for protecting natural resources of international or global importance. On 25 August 2005, Alderney’s West Coast and the Burhou Islands were designated as wetlands of worldwide importance and became the first Ramsar site in the Bailiwick of Guernsey. The Ramsar site covers some 1,500 hectares of land and sea, almost twice the land area of mainland Alderney. The Ramsar Convention requires participants to develop a framework for the conservation and “wise use” of designated sites. This strategy aims to provide a framework and action plan for the long-term protection and sustainable use of the Alderney Ramsar site (and its surrounding area). 1.1 Strategic goals • Maintain and enhance species populations and marine habitats of the Alderney West coast and Burhou Islands Ramsar site. • Achieve the sustainable use of the Ramsar site and surrounding waters to protect the site for current and future generations • Develop Environmental Legislation in the form of an Alderney Wildlife Act which will allow for the creation of marine and terrestrial protected areas. 1.2 Objectives • To ensure effective monitoring of the extent and condition of key habitats and mammal species for which the Ramsar site has been designated. • To maximise the potential of the islands and marine environment to support vibrant marine life and seabird populations, through appropriate management and protection measures. • To ensure effective monitoring of key seabird colonies to assess populations and breeding success of priority species. • To maintain the numbers and assemblage of seabirds within the Ramsar site (to at least Seabird 2000 levels). • To provide a framework for decisions on use of the Ramsar site and promotion of its importance amongst local people and visitors. • To ensure regular reporting against all plan objectives and review management actions accordingly. 5 Alderney West Coast and Burhou Islands Ramsar Site Management Strategy 1.3 Political context of strategy The Alderney West Coast and Burhou Islands Ramsar site is one of 165 Ramsar sites designated throughout the UK and its Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. The Channel Islands are a Crown Dependency, and therefore outside the UK and the European Union, with an independent legislative system. In metropolitan UK itself (Great Britain & Northern Ireland), Ramsar Sites receive protection equivalent to that currently afforded to statutory European sites such as SPAs 1 and SACs 2 designated under EU nature conservation legislation. Such sites receive a higher level of protection than the UK’s Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). Guidance is given to local planning authorities and other public bodies on issues which should be taken into account in making decisions on development proposals likely to impact on those sites. If, unusually, consent is given to development on or affecting such sites, lost wetlands interests will have to be replaced, by restoring and recreating habitats. The UK Government also expects that developers will normally have to bear the cost of these compensatory packages, under the polluter pays principle. There is no domestic statutory nature conservation site system in Alderney, i.e., no SSSIs or equivalent, and therefore no legal protection in place. EU directives do not apply, and so no provision for SPA’s or SAC’s The importance of the Island and its surrounding area is however demonstrated by two international recognitions: Ramsar (an inter-governmental agreement) and ‘Important Bird Area’ (a global scale assessment by an NGO network). Alderney’s Ramsar designation carries significant weight by its international recognition accepted by the States of Alderney and the UK Department of Constitutional Affairs. The designation is therefore a powerful tool to ensure the most important habitats and species of Alderney are protected for the long term. The extent of the designation is shown in Figure 1. 1 SPA is a Special Protection Area, designated for internationally important bird populations and providing a high degree of legal protection to the birds and their habitats 2 SAC is a Special Area of Conservation, designated for internationally important habitats and providing a high degree of protection 6 Alderney West Coast and Burhou Islands Ramsar Site Management Strategy Figure 1 Map of the Alderney West Coast and the Burhou Islands Ramsar Site 7 Alderney West Coast and Burhou Islands Ramsar Site Management Strategy • Important Bird Areas Birdlife International, a global partnership of conservation organisations, has developed an Important Bird Areas (IBA) programme that aims to achieve protection for internationally important bird populations. Within the EU, IBAs can assist with the identification of Special Protection Areas. Sixty percent of Europe’s IBAs have some sort of legal protection. Recognising the international importance of Alderney’s gannet colonies, Les Etacs and Ortac are both IBAs (Heath and Evans (eds) 2000), and both are within the Ramsar site. The Alderney Ramsar designation therefore currently provides the key mechanism for protection of these IBAs. • Convention on Biological Diversity Biodiversity is the word that describes the wide range of plant, animal and microbial species and the varieties of individuals within each species. Observations in different parts of the world throughout the 20th century indicate that biodiversity is being lost, (i.e. species are becoming extinct) at a rate that is faster than at any time since the final years of the Cretaceous period that saw the end of the dinosaurs.