A new restoration project has been launched to protect threatened wildlife at the Welsh Harp, a rare urban wetland in North London.
The site supports 253 bird species and offers easily accessible green space for around 1.5 million residents, but climate change and heavy urbanisation are placing habitats under pressure.
Research shows alarming declines in key species, with Common Tern nesting pairs dropping from 44 in 2000 to four in 2022. Great Crested Grebe nests also fell from 55 in 1987 to 27 in 2022, alongside wider reductions in breeding success.
Barnet Council, the Canal and River Trust and Kusuma Trust UK have launched the Wings on Water (WoW) scheme to reverse this trend.
Specialist contractor Ebsford Environmental will revive long-blocked water channels and remove contaminated silt to restore conditions for breeding birds.
The project will also tackle invasive species including Japanese knotweed and giant hogweed. New plants and reed beds will be added to absorb pollution and prevent runoff from major roads, strengthening habitat protection.
WoW will create more than one hectare of new habitat, including 0.52 hectares of reedbeds, 0.4 hectares of marshy grassland and 0.47 hectares of wildflower meadow.
Cllr Alan Schneiderman of Barnet’s environment group, said the project will “bring the whole community together while supporting Barnet’s broader sustainability goals.” He added that restoring habitats will make the borough “more resilient to climate change.”
Soma Pujari of Kusuma Trust UK said the work will have “lasting impact for Londoners and urban wildlife.” Ros Daniels of the Canal and River Trust added that the Welsh Harp is “one of London’s most significant urban wild places.”
The 36-month project is funded by £150,000 from Kusuma Trust UK, £150,000 of council match funding and a further £73,000 from S106 contributions.
New project launched to restore Welsh Harp habitats and protect threatened wildlife appeared first on Energy Live News.