dungenessNNRleaf4 4/5/07 09:37 Page 1 National Nature Reserve

The RSPB Railway The RSPB, Europe’s largest wildlife charity has a The Romney, Hythe and Light long history on Dungeness. Since the early Railway terminates at Dungeness and is a twentieth century it has employed watchers to look popular tourist attraction for the region. The after the breeding seabirds on the shingle. narrow gauge railway was built in 1927 from The RSPB manages large areas of Hythe to and the extension to gravel pits, reed beds and shingle Dungeness followed a year later. Captain John habitats which have colonies of Howey, a railway enthusiast, built the RHDR seabirds, breeding ducks and after making his fortune from real estate in the wintering wildfowl. centre of Melbourne, Australia. Website www.rhdr.org.uk To discover more and explore the Dungeness RSPB reserve, why not Listening Ears visit the reserve with At the back of two gravel pits at Lade on an its new Visitor and island are the three concrete mirrors, or Education Centre and listening ears, built in the 1920s and 1930s shop. You can also to detect enemy aircraft as they approached explore a number of Britain. This is the only site in Britain where nature trails and hides all three designs are situated in one place. around the gravel pits This early warning system had a range of 20 of Dungeness with miles and became obsolete by the outbreak large car parks and of the Second World War toilets also available. due to the arrival of Contact the RSPB on radar, however they 01797 320588. have survived. They can www.rspb.org.uk be seen on free, non booking, guided walks in the summer. Website: The Water Tower www.rmcp.co.uk A distinctive landmark across the shingle landscape is the white capped water tower which is at the back of a gravel pit on the road between and Dungeness. This impressive tower was built in 1905. The drinking water for most of the comes from a large aquifer under the shingle and is of excellent quality.

Lighthouses There have been five lighthouses built at Dungeness over the centuries. Today, the Old Lighthouse, which was built in 1904, still stands adjacent to the Round House which once had a light on the top itself. The New Lighthouse (the stripy one) was built in 1961 to aid shipping Lydd Ranges further out on the Point. The vast Lydd Ranges have been owned by the The New Lighthouse Ministry of Defence since 1881, with the Royal remains operational, Irish Rifles forming the first garrison there. The first permanent buildings were erected in 1906 in while the Old Lighthouse what are today very busy firing ranges stretching is a tourist attraction. from Camber to near the power stations. www.dungenesslighthouse.com

Power Stations Lifeboats There are two nuclear power stations at The big white Dungeness, the oldest and nearest to lifeboat station the lighthouse was built in the late was built in the 1950s and early 1960s, with late 1970s. The decommissioning starting in early old lifeboat station 2007. The second power station which was built in 1921 started generating electricity in 1983 and is situated continues to operate. Websites near to the fishing www.britishnucleargroup.com (Dunge- boats about half a ness A) and www.british-energy.com kilometre nearer (Dungeness B). to the Point. www.dungeness-lifeboat.org.uk

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Dungeness A National Nature Dungeness is an unique landscape with wooden Dungeness houses, power stations, a miniature railway line, Reserve at the bottom of lighthouses and expansive gravel pits. The communities of your garden plants and It is not usual to have a National Nature Reserve National Nature animals living at at the bottom of the garden or opposite your Dungeness are house, but many residents of Dungeness do. Help distinctive, precious look after the NNR by not having fires or dumping Reserve and exceptionally rubbish on the land. Improving the quality of life fragile. The diverse and the landscape is the goal for all of us – for wildlife, complex generations to come. land form and sheer size make Dungeness one of the best examples of a shingle beach in the world.

Dungeness also holds a special place in the hearts of local people. Please help look after Dungeness A National Nature Reserve for generations to come. Dungeness has been designated as a National Nature Reserve (NNR), a Special Protection Area Romney Marsh Countryside Project (SPA) and a Special Area for Conservation (SAC). Romney Marsh Day Centre, It is home to many rare and endangered insects, Rolfe Lane, New Romney, plants and wildlife. The National Nature Reserve TN28 8JR stretches across Dungeness to encompass the vast Tel: 01797 367934 RSPB reserve and is intended to help protect the Email [email protected] Website www.rmcp.co.uk landscape and its wildlife. Gravel extraction across Dungeness Dungeness has attracted the gravel extraction industry for years. You will see the legacy of gravel extraction in the number of old gravel pits across the landscape. Breeding seabirds and wintring wildfowl, like the Shoveler Duck, the rare Great Crested Newt and Medicinal Leech now benefit from such wetland sites. Dungeness, Lydd-on-Sea, Designed by Nick Evans Communications, (tel 01227 275157). Cover and map artwork by John Cann. Lade, Greatstone-on-Sea