Home  Coastal Heritage  Coastlines Magazine  Nature and Wildlife  Research Sefton Coast Partnership  Shoreline Management  Students and Teachers  Visiting the Coast

Partners Terms of Reference Board Members Board Minutes Working Group Task Groups Forum Sefton Coast Management Plan Access & Interpretation Forest Plan History & Archaeology Life Long Learning Nature Conservation & Shoreline Management Research Tourism & Communication

Task Groups Nature Conservation & Shoreline Management Chair - Mr Dave McAleavy News June 2007 The Task Group has made considerable progress over the last year in the development of the nature conservation strategy, in supporting the work of the North Merseyside Biodiversity Action Plan (NMBAP) and in developing links with Merseyside BioBank (the Merseyside biological records centre). Consultation is underway on the draft Nature Conservation Strategy prepared by the task group. The draft strategy will be presented at the Sefton Coast Partnership Forum meeting on 7 July 2007. The work has been coordinated by the Biodiversity Project Officer, co-funded by Sefton Council and English Nature. The draft documents and all the background information can be found on the consultation pages. Please visit the consultation pages for more information Work was guided by a subgroup of the nature conservation task group. All minutes are posted on these pages (see box). Consultation was launched at the SCP Forum in February 2006. The SCP Board published its response to the consultation in June 2006. Four working groups helped identify issues in relation to coastal processes, water resources, habitats & species and integrated landscape management. Two field visits were held in Summer 2006 followed by a final meeting to agree the content of the strategy. For a quick view of the strategy please see the summary document. This contains the essential elements of the strategy. The strategy is based on the following principles. Taking a coastwide approach: To ensure that the actions of all landowners are seen in the context of the whole dune system or at the estuary level. Working with nature-adaptability: To allow nature to take its course wherever possible, managing for the long term, in the context of predicted climate change. Working with coastal processes: To accept coastal change and provide space for natural adaptation. Continuity of management: To conserve the important habitats of the coast through active and sustainable management. Restoration where necessary: The restoration of natural hydrology, quality of habitats and distribution of species should be considered. Proposals would be subject to consultation. Involving local communities: To involve local communities in developing solutions to conservation challenges. To promote nature as a source of inspiration, enjoyment and learning for local people, visitors and wildlife specialists. The nature conservation strategy will help the Sefton Coast Partnership, statutory bodies, land owners and land managers in their efforts to conserve the natural features of the Sefton Coast. In particular the strategy will help to; support land managers in the conservation and management of the international, national and local sites which have been identified for their biological and geological interest, with the support of Natural England, help meet statutory obligations for nature conservation arising from the designation of these sites, help to review and coordinate the delivery of the targets and actions contained in the North Merseyside Biodiversity Action Plan relevant to the Sefton Coast, deliver Government nature conservation targets for 2010 also included in the Local Area Agreement for Sefton, support the implementation of the Sefton Coast Woodlands Forest Plan and Red Squirrel Refuge and Buffer Zone Strategy support the development and operation of BioBank (the Merseyside biological records centre) maintain good lines of communication between partners, stakeholders and the local community on issues relating to nature conservation and landscape, and; maintain links with the Natura 2000 network of protected sites through continuing membership of Eurosite. For further information please contact John Houston, Biodiversity Project Officer at; John.houston@leisure.sefton.gov.uk The Nature Conservation and Shoreline Management Task Groups combined in 2003. A Sub-Group was set up in October 2005 to guide the development and implementation of a Nature Conservation and Biodiversity Strategy for the Sefton Coast. Nature Conservation Terms of Reference: - Promote co-ordinated land management to achieve general conservation targets and favourable conservation status. - Promote awareness of NMBAP within the Sefton Coast Partnership and offer guidance on its delivery. - Encourage community education, awareness and participation in nature conservation issues. - Promote training for volunteers and Partnership staff in nature conservation. - Encourage appropriate research support within Sefton. - Deliver annual reports to Partnership Board and North Merseyside Biodiversity Group. - Investigate appropriate funding opportunities. Representatives: Land Managers: Natural England - Wigan/Ribble/Ainsdale NNR RSPB National Trust Sefton Coast and Countryside Service Hesketh Golf Course Formby Golf Course Royal Birkdale Golf Course Southport and Ainsdale Golf Course Hillside Golf Course West Lancs Golf Course Southport Municipal Golf Course Altcar Rifle Range Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside Environmental Advisory Service National Museums Liverpool Forestry Commission Environment Agency Natural England Shoreline Management Terms of Reference: Purpose: To discuss and disseminate information relating to shoreline change, monitoring and predictions. To maximise the use and exchange of data. Composition: Landowners and those with an interest in the monitoring of the area such as English Nature and the North Merseyside Biodiversity Group. Frequency: Twice a year would appear to be appropriate with additional meetings called as and when required. Discussion: There is a substantial amout of data being collected on the coast and it is important that we maximise the use and exchange of this data through, in the first instance, sharing. There are also opportunities for joint data collection and jointly funded initiatives. the information obtained from the data can inform the management decision-making process and through discussion there are opportunities to extend or amend the processing of data to give information that is more useful for partners. Home Page - Top www.seftoncoast.org.uk

Minutes (pdf) 15 April 2005 Sub-Group Minutes (pdf) 24 October 2005 15 November 2005 11 January 2006 3 March 2006 4 April 2006 14 June 2006 30 August 2006 21 November 2006 Search WWW Sefton Coast -previous page- Last Updated: 07 May 2010 2009 SummerCoastlines now available