Helmsdale Coast Site of Special Scientific Interest SITE MANAGEMENT STATEMENT Site code: 772 The Links, Golspie Business Park, Golspie, Sutherland, KW10 6UB. Tel 01408 634063 [email protected] Purpose This is a public statement prepared by SNH for owners and occupiers of the SSSI. It outlines the reasons it is designated as an SSSI and provides guidance on how its special natural features should be conserved or enhanced. This Statement does not affect or form part of the statutory notification and does not remove the need to apply for consent for operations requiring consent. We welcome your views on this statement. This statement is available in Gaelic on request. Natural features of Condition of feature Helmsdale Coast SSSI (and date monitored) Kimmeridgian (geology) Favourable, maintained (October 2001) Mesozoic palaeobotany (geology) Not yet assessed See Annex 1 for a list of natural features of overlapping Natura sites that are not notified features of Helmsdale Coast SSSI. See the Site Management Statement for Berriedale Coast SSSI for more details of the overlapping features of this SSSI. Description of the site Helmsdale Coast Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) is located between Brora and the Ord of Caithness on the east coast of Sutherland, and comprises five separate stretches of coastline. Kimmeridgian In the Jurassic period (a period of geological time, dating from about 205 to 140 million years ago), sea covered most of Scotland, and so much of the Jurassic rock found in Scotland is formed from mud, silt, sand and other sediments deposited either in marine environments or on river deltas. In the north-east of Scotland the Helmsdale Fault is a fracture in the Earth’s crust where one side has moved relative to the other. The straight coastline along the east of Caithness and Sutherland still shows the line of the Helmsdale Fault which was very active during the Jurassic geological period. During the Jurassic period, the Helmsdale Fault was under water. The land to the east lay under deep water and now forms the strip of coastal land between Helmsdale and Golspie, and the Moray Firth beyond. Movement on the Helmsdale Fault resulted in sediments of the Jurassic period being deposited into the deep water during the Kimmeridgian age 155 - 150 million years ago. These formed rock that is now exposed along the Helmsdale-Golspie coastal strip and beneath the Moray Firth. The rocks west of the Helmsdale Fault are much older than the coastal Jurassic rocks and include granite, sandstone and hard metamorphic rocks. The Jurassic rocks on the seabed in the Moray Firth are important economically because they contain oil and have been the subject of commercial exploitation offshore in recent decades. Helmsdale Coast SSSI is one of the few places that the Jurassic rocks can be seen on land. This site is therefore nationally important to the understanding of the climate and environment in the Jurassic time period, and how the Jurassic sediments were deposited, as well as to the oil industry. Mesozoic palaeobotany The Kimmeridgian rocks (around 155-150 million years old) display a complex array of boulder beds formed when material fell from the edge of the fault zone in the coastal areas into deepwater conditions. These boulder beds are filled with fossilized plant and animal material which also fell into the deep water environment and were compressed in the sediment. The exposures are mainly a combination of sandstones, siltstones and boulder beds. Culgower Bay, contains the most important assemblage of Kimmeridgian (Late Jurassic) flora in Britain and possibly Europe, providing a valuable insight into the vegetation growing on land at the margin of the Jurassic sea around 150 million years ago. Of around forty species that have been found, four are unique to the site and several others may also eventually prove to be so. The site was last monitored in October 2001 and found to be in favourable condition. There was concern raised about public fly tipping at certain locations which should be stopped and graffiti vandalism carved into the rock outcrop south of Lothbeg Point. However, there would little advantage in removing the graffiti because it would damage the outcrop further. The northern end of Helmsdale Coast SSSI overlaps with Berriedale Cliffs SSSI, a component part of the East Caithness Cliffs Special Protection Area (SPA) and Special Area of Conservation (SAC). Berriedale Cliffs SSSI is internationally important for its maritime cliff vegetation and its seabird colonies. There are particularly large numbers of breeding razorbill, guillemot, kittiwake, fulmar and shag. The site also overlaps with the Moray Firth SAC, a site designated for its bottlenose dolphin and subtidal sandbank interest. View west from eastern end of the site View east towards Lothbeg Point Past and present management The majority of Helmsdale Coast SSSI lies in the intertidal areas along the east coast of Sutherland. As a result there is almost no active management, past or present on the site. There are some small areas of dune grassland that fall within the site boundary, around Lothbeg Point. These are grazed by livestock which maintains the visibility of rock exposures in the vicinity. The foreshore is bounded by dunes, rough grazing, housing and Helmsdale harbour. The public regularly walk on the foreshore, as do fossil collectors. For part of its length the site is bounded by the railway line and there have been coastal defence works undertaken in the past to protect the railway. Objectives for Management (and key factors influencing the condition of natural features) We wish to work with land managers to protect the site and to maintain and where necessary enhance its features of special interest. SNH aims carry out site survey, monitoring and research as appropriate to increase our knowledge and understanding of the site and its natural features. The EU Habitats and Birds Directives oblige Government to avoid, in SACs and SPAs, the deterioration of natural habitats and the habitats of species, as well as disturbance of the species for which the areas have been designated, where such disturbance could be significant in relation to the objectives of these Directives. The objectives below have been assessed against these requirements. All authorities proposing to carry out or permit to be carried out operations likely to have a significant effect on the European interests of this SSSI must assess those operations against the relevant Natura conservation objectives (which are listed on our website through the SNHi – SiteLink facility). The list of Operations Requiring Consent, and the discussions on land management involved in the issuing of formal consents, is intended to minimise the threat of any damage to the natural features. 1. The rock exposures and access to key geological outcrops on the site should be maintained by protecting the area from unauthorised dumping or construction works, including coastal defences. Any unauthorised dumping should be reported to The Highland Council (Planning Department) and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA). 2. Promotion of the ‘Scottish Fossil Code’ will encourage the sustainable study and enjoyment of the fossils found on the site and avoid irresponsible or large scale commercial fossil collecting. The Fossil Code can be downloaded from SNH’s website at http://www.snh.gov.uk/docs/B572665.pdf Other factors affecting the natural features of the site Erosion: Coastal erosion is occurring along the dunes at the top of the foreshore, however this is not affecting the geological interest of this site. Date last reviewed: 2 February 2011 Annex 1 List of natural features of overlapping Natura that are not notified features of Helmsdale Coast SSSI. Features of overlapping Natura Condition of feature Other relevant designations sites that are not notified as (date monitored) (SAC, SPA or SSSI) Helmsdale Coast SSSI natural features Bottlenose dolphin Unfavourable, recovering Moray Firth SAC (March 2005) Subtidal sandbanks Favourable maintained Moray Firth SAC (August 2004) Vegetated sea cliffs Favourable, maintained East Caithness Cliffs SAC / (July 2009) Berriedale Cliffs SSSI Seabird assemblage, breeding Favourable, maintained East Caithness Cliffs SPA / (July 1999) Berriedale Cliffs SSSI Cormorant, breeding Unfavourable, declining SPA (July 1999) Fulmar, breeding Favourable, maintained SPA / Berriedale Cliffs SSSI (July 1999) Great black-backed gull, breeding Unfavourable, declining SPA (July 1999) Guillemot, breeding Favourable, maintained SPA / Berriedale Cliffs SSSI (July 1999) Herring gull, breeding Unfavourable, declining SPA (July 1999) Kittiwake, breeding Favourable, maintained SPA / Berriedale Cliffs SSSI (July 1999) Peregrine, breeding Favourable, maintained SPA (June 2006) Puffin, breeding Favourable, maintained SPA / Berriedale Cliffs SSSI (July 1999) Razorbill, breeding Favourable, maintained SPA (July 1999) Shag, breeding Unfavourable, declining SPA / Berriedale Cliffs SSSI (July 1999) .