Calthorpe Broad NNR - Broad Restoration

Tender description

Removal and disposal of approximately 4,100 m² of emergent vegetation and sediment around the edges of the Broad, to restore the same amount of open water. This work is designed to restore the Broad to around 6,000 m², thereby maintaining the open water communities while also keeping much of the new fen vegetation, which is also of considerable value. Calthorpe Broad National Nature Reserve (NNR) consists of a small isolated Broad approx 4km NE of Stalham, Norfolk, together with associated dykes, wet and dry woodland, fen and grazing marshes, total area 44.5 ha. It is also a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) and part of the Broads Special Area of Conservation (SAC) and Broadland Special Protection Area (SPA). Being unconnected to the main Broads river systems, the Broad escaped much of the damage caused by nutrient enrichment and boasted a healthy and diverse open water community, with many species now rare or uncommon in the wider Broads. Major drainage operations in the late 1960s and early 1970s resulted in significant loss and damage to this community, but recent restoration efforts have allowed more water into the site and seen considerable recovery