CT7: Creation of inter-tidal and saline habitat on intensive grassland

Find out about eligibility and requirements for the creation of inter-tidal and saline habitat on intensive grassland option.

From:
Rural Payments Agency and Natural England
Published
2 April 2015
Last updated
8 February 2022 — See all updates
Grant type:
Option
Land use:
Biodiversity, Coast, Flood risk, Priority habitats
Tiers or standalone items:
Higher Tier
Funding (per unit per year):
£401 to £500

How much will be paid

£494 per hectare (ha).

How long this option lasts

This option runs for 20 years, not the standard 5 years for the scheme, in recognition of the level of management change involved and its largely irreversible nature.

Where to use this option

It is available for Countryside Stewardship Higher Tier on whole or part-parcels which are non-rotational, on sites that are both:

  • next to saltmarsh or other inter-tidal habitats
  • grassland that lies behind a coastal defence - most of the land must lie below mean high water spring tide level (the average of the heights of two successive high waters when the tidal range is greatest)

The creation of the inter-tidal habitat must both:

Where this option cannot be used

If the planned creation of inter-tidal and saline habitat is:

  • as compensation, planning consent condition or other Habitat Regulations requirement
  • on areas of grassland priority habitat, unless agreed with Natural England
  • on land that has previously received 20 years’ agri-environment funding for inter-tidal habitat creation

Features that can be included in this option

You can include the following features if they are part of the land area (once inter-tidal habitat is created), even if they are not eligible for the Basic Payment Scheme (BPS):

  • open water (such as lagoons and creeks)
  • bare mud

How this option will benefit the environment

It creates inter-tidal and saline habitats, including transitional areas (transitions between saltmarsh and nearby habitats), on grassland or improved grassland.

If successful there will be:

  • inter-tidal and saltmarsh areas developing
  • a mosaic of open habitats such as lagoons, creeks and mudflats
  • saltmarsh plants colonising more stable higher areas of the habitats
  • lugworm casts, feeding birds and other evidence of marine invertebrates

As a result of tides bringing in sediment and seeds, a range of inter-tidal habitats will form such as mudflats, coastal saltmarsh, together with saline lagoons and transitions between these and other habitats where the topography promotes this. These habitats will benefit many specialised plants and animals adapted to the differing degrees of tidal inundation and saline influence. These factors result in variations in vegetation cover from bare mud to dense saltmarsh, and succession between them over time.

The creation of small-scale saline lagoons, which require an input of seawater, can be promoted by this option. This option will also contribute to more sustainable flood management, adaptation to climate change and enhancement of the coastal landscape. Where sediment is deposited, the option may contribute to the protection of important archaeological sites from the impacts of ploughing or other forms of cultivation (but early consultation with historic specialists will be needed where such sites are present).

Requirements

You must:

  • agree all drainage works, including modification to existing drainage, in writing with Natural England you carry out any work

You may need a Feasibility Study (PA2) to include this option in an application. The study will include how to:

  • prepare the site and manage any existing vegetation
  • excavate any lagoons or creeks
  • manage vegetation once established
  • carry out any necessary breaches to the sea wall

Keeping records

Before you apply you should contact both Natural England and the Environment Agency for advice and gain consents or permissions required. You do not need to provide the consents or permissions with your application, but you will need to submit them with your payment claim.

You must send the following with your application:

  • a map of permitted access routes – you can mark these on any map, including the Farm Environment Record (FER)

On your annual payment claim you must declare that you have not carried out any activities prohibited by the option requirements and must send the following:

  • support from Environment Agency

You must keep the following records and supply them on request:

  • receipted invoices, consents or permissions connected with the work
  • field operations at the parcel level, including associated invoices
  • a grazing activity record for any sites grazed
  • photographs of the management undertaken

You can locate the following options and supplements on the same area as this option:

Advice and suggestions for how to carry out this option

The following advice is helpful, but they are not requirements for this item.

To make sure that transitional areas are included in the agreement area, the boundary of the agreement should normally extend to Highest Astronomical Tide (HAT) plus 1 metre. This will allow for development of transitional zone, including unusual transitions from saline to brackish to freshwater habitats. Such instances would need to be identified in the initial planning stages prior to completion of the agreement and clearly justified for individual sites.

This is a specialised option that is only likely to be used in a relatively small number of cases, where a managed breach of coastal defences is planned. On sites where there is interest and potential for this option, discussions should be held with Natural England and the Environment Agency at an early stage. Planning for such projects can often take several years, with coastal process modelling and feasibility studies usually needed.

Where coastal defences are not being maintained and are then overtopped or breached naturally, option CT5 - Creation of inter-tidal and saline habitat by non-intervention would apply.

Biodiversity

This option has been identified as being beneficial for biodiversity. All Countryside Stewardship habitat creation, restoration and management options are of great significance for biodiversity recovery, as are the wide range of arable options in the scheme. Capital items and supplements can support this habitat work depending on the holding’s situation and potential.

The connectivity of habitats is also very important and habitat options should be linked wherever possible. Better connectivity will allow wildlife to move/colonise freely to access water, food, shelter and breeding habitat, and will allow natural communities of both animals and plants to adapt in response to environmental and climate change.

Further information

You can find more information in:

  • the Environment Agency’s saltmarsh management manual
  • The Saltmarsh Creation Handbook: A Project Manager’s Guide to the Creation of Saltmarsh and Inter-tidal Mudflat by AS Nottage and PA Robertson (RSPB/CIWEM, 2005)

Read Countryside Stewardship: get funding to protect and improve the land you manage to find out more information about Higher Tier including how to apply.

Updates to this page

Published 2 April 2015
Last updated 8 February 2022 + show all updates

  1. New payment rate from 1 January 2022.

  2. The Requirements and Keeping records sections of this page have been updated

  3. Updated for 2017 applications.

  4. Information updated for applications in 2016.

  5. First published.

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