August update
It’s all about the mud at Steart – a rich, carbon-storing habitat for wildlife and a large focus of our work on site!
A few weeks ago we had a visit from the Bridgwater Fire Service who carried out a mud rescue exercise on Otterhampton Marsh for their own training. They kindly allowed staff and volunteers to observe and we all learnt some valuable lessons about what to do and what kit is available if the worst was to happen.
You may have noticed we have been carrying out dredging works on Otterhampton Marsh to deepen inlets and lagoons, removing silt after 10 years of build-up. This will increase resilience to drying out and improve the habitat for feeding birds. All removed silt will be reused for landscaping, on the flood bank and to create small islands.
PLEASE can we make a plea to dog walkers to clean up and remove all dog waste from the site. Two incidents this week involving bags of dog mess hidden in long grass have highlighted the importance of this issue. One of our wardens was splattered head to toe whilst strimming, and the mower ran over another bag which contaminated the equipment and left shredded plastic blowing around. Dog mess is a biohazard and can cause some very nasty diseases. Please help to protect the environment and our staff and volunteers who work the site every day. You can use the general waste bin in the car park and there are dog bins at the Combwich entrance to the site. Thank you
