Great North Fen visualisation
Great North Fen
Durham Wildlife Trust has a vision for a Great North Fen. Restored landscapes where nature can recover and wetland habitats will sequester and store carbon.
The Great North Fen is an ambitious project aimed at restoring the Durham Carrs, a historically significant wetland area. The vision focuses on creating a connected, functioning wetland landscape that supports a diverse range of wildlife and helps combat climate change by sequestering carbon.
Key Objectives:
- Restoration of Wetland Habitats: The project aims to restore priority wetland habitats, including floodplain grazing marsh and lowland fens.
- Biodiversity Enhancement: By restoring these habitats, the project seeks to support a wide range of species, from plants and invertebrates to mammals like otters and water voles.
- Natural Flood Management: The restored wetlands will act as natural water stores, helping to mitigate flooding in urban areas downstream.
- Community Involvement: The project involves local communities and stakeholders to ensure long-term sustainability and resilience.
Current Progress:
- Land Acquisition: The Trust has already secured land at Bishop’s Fen, Ricknall Carrs and Mordon Carrs to begin the restoration work.
- Fundraising: Efforts are ongoing to raise funds to support additional land purchases and continued restoration activities. Donate here.
- Landowner Engagement: Neighbouring landowners are being supported by the Trust to carry out restoration on their own sites where appropriate.
This vision represents a significant step towards reversing habitat loss and promoting environmental sustainability in the region. 🌿
Bishop's Fen
Bishop’s Fen is a 20-hectare site located about 2 kilometers south of Bishop Middleham in County Durham on the floodplain of the River Skerne.
The first phase of the Great North Fen restoration, Bishop’s Fen is transforming back into a rich fenland habitat. Works here include creating ponds and pools to enhance wetland biodiversity. The area supports a variety of wildlife, including flocks of wildfowl and wading birds such as lapwing, curlew, and golden plover. The restoration aims to attract even more species, including bitterns, egrets, and cranes. In addition, the site will be allowed to naturally flood, retaining water for longer periods and providing flood alleviation by slowly releasing water back into the river.
Ricknall Carrs
Ricknall Carrs is a crucial part of the Great North Fen Vision, aiming to restore the historic wetlands of Durham and support a diverse range of wildlife. A 61-hectare wet grassland site located just north-east of Newton Aycliffe, Ricknall Carrs lies between the A1 and the East Coast Main Line railway. Ricknall Carrs is undergoing significant restoration to transform it back into a thriving wetland habitat. This includes creating pools, scrapes, and channels to hold water on the surface for longer periods. The site attracts a variety of wading and wetland birds, including curlew, lapwing, and golden plover. The restoration aims to support breeding populations of these and other species. The wet grassland and pools help manage floodwaters, providing natural flood alleviation by retaining water and releasing it slowly back into the river. The site is managed through conservation grazing, which helps maintain the habitat for wildlife.
Mordon Carrs
Mordon Carrs, near Mordon, County Durham, is the latest phase of the broader efforts to restore and enhance wetland habitats, contributing to the Great North Fen Vision. Once part of the Durham Carrs – a large wetland area that was drained in the 19th and 20th centuries. The aim is to slowly return the low grade farmland on lower-lying sections, which includes part of the largest area of lowland peat in County Durham, in to fen and other wetland habitats. As the land rises, this will transition into species-rich grasslands and wood pasture on the higher ground.
The Trust was able to purchase land at Mordon Carrs through Natural England and the Nutrient Mitigation scheme and is working on Biodiversity Net Gain schemes which would create species-rich grasslands on existing grassland areas.
