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Local Wildlife Site Review 2007

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Local Wildlife Site Review 2007 Rochford District Council November 2007 Rochford District Local Wildlife Sites Review 2007 LDF IMPORTANT NOTES Nomenclature The term "Site of Importance for Nature Conservation" (SINC) used in previous reports is here replaced by the currently generally accepted term of “Local Wildlife Site”. Rationale It is hoped that this identification of important Local Wildlife Sites is not seen as a hindrance to the livelihood of those landowners affected, or an attempt to blindly influence the management of such sites. It is an attempt to describe the wildlife resource we have in the county as a whole, which has been preserved thus far as a result of the management by landowners and together we hope to be able to help landowners retain and enhance this biodiversity for the future. Public Access Identification as a Local Wildlife Site within this report does not confer any right of public access to the site, above and beyond any Public Rights of Way that may exist. The vast majority of the Sites are in private ownership and this should be respected at all times. Land Ownership It has always been the intention of the Essex Wildlife Trust to contact all landowners of Local Wildlife Sites, advising them of this identification and promoting nature conservation management of the site. To that end, the Essex Wildlife Trust has appointed a Local Wildlife Sites Officer. While this lengthy undertaking is in progress it is requested that the Essex Wildlife Trust is contacted prior to any formal approach regarding any Site identified within this report. Boundaries Whilst every attempt has been made to ensure accurate mapping of the site boundaries, the accompanying maps should be considered as being illustrative only. The Essex Wildlife Trust should be consulted over the precise boundary of all sites, should any dispute occur or precise determination be required. Planning The information within this report should not be used as a bypass to the normal planning consultation process. It is inevitable that, with the passage of time, some Local Wildlife Sites will be lost or damaged to the extent that they are no longer considered as such. Similarly, new Sites may be identified and periodically added to the list for the borough. For these reasons, the Essex Wildlife Trust still wishes to be consulted on all planning proposals, regardless of whether or not they apparently affect a Site detailed within this report. This report will allow a greater understanding of the wildlife resources of the district/borough and will make the consultation process much faster and more cost-effective. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ EECOS, November 2007 Rochford District Local Wildlife Sites Review INDEX 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 General Introduction 1 1.2 Background 1 1.3 Objectives of Review 1 1.4 Review Process and Methodology 1 1.5 Limitations of Survey 2 2. RESULTS 2.1 Identification of Local Wildlife Sites 3 2.2 Deletions 4 2.3 Additions 4 2.4 Amendments 5 2.5 Other Sites 6 2.6 Summary 6 2.7 Consultation 6 3. CONCLUSIONS 3.1 Local Wildlife Site Network 7 3.2 UK BAP Priority Habitats 8 3.3 Recommendations for Review 9 Appendix 1 Summary Table of Local Wildlife Sites Appendix 2 Local Wildlife Sites Register Appendix 3 Consultation Responses ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ EECOS, November 2007 Rochford District Local Wildlife Sites Review ROCHFORD DISTRICT LOCAL WILDLIFE SITES REVIEW 1. INTRODUCTION 1.1 General Introduction This report has been produced by Essex Ecology Services Ltd. (EECOS), the ecological consultancy of the Essex Wildlife Trust, on behalf of Rochford District Council. It comprises the results of a review of existing and potential Local Wildlife Sites, intended to contribute to the Local Development Framework evidence base. 1.2 Background A previous survey report, produced in 1993, incorporated a basic land use survey with an exercise to identify the most important wildlife habitats present within the district. These important wildlife habitats were identified as “Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation” [SINC], with the results summarised in “Nature conservation – A Reference Guide” produced by the Essex Wildlife Trust. In the intervening years these sites have been referred to as County Wildlife Sites and, in some places, Wildlife Sites, but in Essex the term Local Wildlife Sites has now been adopted and is used throughout this report to refer to sites of this designation, irrespective of the terminology that was used at the time. 1.3 Objectives of Review The principal objective of this review is to update the Local Wildlife Site network within Rochford District in the light of changes in available knowledge and by application of draft site selection criteria for Essex. This updated information can contribute to a robust evidence base as required of each Local Authority as part of their Local Development Framework. 1.4 Review Process and Methodology The basis for this review has been a consultation exercise to identify potential new Sites and a field survey of these and of all existing Local Wildlife Sites. All of these sites were then assessed against the current Local Wildlife Site Selection Criteria to determine whether or not they qualified for Local Wildlife Site status. Species and habitats now afforded attention via county or national Biodiversity Action Plans were specifically considered and their representation within the Local Wildlife Site network ensured. The Local Wildlife Site Selection Criteria have been developed through reviews in other Essex districts and modified in line with national guidelines and following a wide consultation exercise. The criteria are still being modified and there are likely to be further changes before their official publication. The version used during this review is the most up to date draft, dated March 2007. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ EECOS, November 2007 Rochford District 1 Local Wildlife Sites Review Following on from the assessment process, a draft suite of Local Wildlife Sites was compiled and circulated for consultation and comment. These comments have been incorporated as far as possible within the final list of sites, while maintaining the rigour of the published Site Selection Criteria. For some groups, such as invertebrates, the state of our knowledge concerning their distribution and ecological requirements is still quite limited, so that whilst criteria are now being put in place to select sites on the grounds of their invertebrate interest, the actual ability to do so is still at an early stage. However, development of the various biodiversity initiatives across the county and the production of a draft Essex Red Data List have helped in focussing on the needs of these populations and identifying their key population localities. These data should continue to feed into subsequent Local Wildlife Site reviews, improving the effectiveness of their nature conservation role. 1.5 Limitations of the Survey Details of ownership of existing or proposed Local Wildlife Sites were not available when the survey was carried out and so access has largely been restricted to public rights of way. Where obvious, the owners of the site were approached at the time of the assessment. For many of the sites there is still a lack of data available regarding invertebrate populations and other species information. Every reasonable effort has been made to obtain the additional information necessary to fully assess existing and proposed sites, but this information will be continually updated which may affect the status of some sites. The scope of the review limited the process to, in most cases, a single visit to each site. While efforts were made to visit each site at the most appropriate season, inevitably some features of some sites were not visible at the time of the visit. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ EECOS, November 2007 Rochford District 2 Local Wildlife Sites Review 2. RESULTS 2.1 Identification of Wildlife Sites The suite of Local Wildlife Sites has been amended from those identified in the report in 1993 for the following reasons: 1. Some sites have been de-selected on account of their decreased nature conservation value or failure to satisfactorily meet the revised selection criteria; 2. A few new, modified or previously overlooked sites have been identified and added to the register; 3. SSSIs have been removed from the system; 4. Some sites have been amalgamated where they lie next to each other or are otherwise sufficiently connected. A major change is that areas designated as Sites of Special Scientific Interest SSSI, included in the previous survey, are now no longer included in the Local Wildlife Site network, in line with national guidance. With regards to Rochford District, this removes: (old SINC identification numbers are given for ease of reference). • W10 Hockley Woods SSSI (92.9 ha) TQ 832915 • G5 Butler's Farm Field (3.2 ha) TQ 902899; now part of the Crouch and Roach SSSI • G6 Mucking Hall Marsh (3.3 ha) TQ 913898; now part of the Crouch and Roach SSSI • FW2 Stannetts Lake and Creek (13.1 ha) TQ 925914; now part of the Crouch and Roach SSSI • C2 River Crouch Marshes SSSI, part EWT Reserve (45.5 ha within the seawall) TQ 835957 and TQ 927950; now part of the Crouch and Roach SSSI • C3 Lower Raypits Farm Seawall/Saltings part of EWT Reserve (2.6 ha excluding saltings) TQ 918965; now part of the Crouch and Roach SSSI • C4. Lion Creek Seawall EWT Reserve (3.0 ha) TQ 923951; now part of the Crouch and Roach SSSI • C6. Wallasea Seawall (1.5 ha) TQ 985946 to TQ 985932; now part of the Crouch and Roach SSSI • C7. Foulness SSSI (1051.3 ha within the seawalls) TQ 990900. Another deviation from past Local Wildlife Site policy is in the inclusion of sites containing inter-tidal habitats. In the past Local Wildlife Status has been restricted to terrestrial and freshwater habitats, but it was felt during this review that this excluded important wildlife sites that fall outside of the SSSI boundaries.
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