Title: The use of fertilizer-free buffer strips to protect dyke flora from nitrate pollution on Walland Marsh S.S.S.I
Author: H. Moorby
Author: F.C. Cook
Document Type: Monograph
Abstract:
Romney Marsh is an area of 150 square km of reclaimed coastal marshlands and
beaches. The landscape is very flat with an intricate pattern of dykes, some
following the natural drainage pattern, others man made.
Since the Second World War much of the grazing marsh has
been ploughed and deep drained for arable cropping. There has been a
reduction of the grazed area from 90 per cent of the total land area before the war
to 32 per cent by the mid 1980s. As a consequent of this reduction most of the
scientific interest in terms of the flora and fauna now resides in the dykes.
To try to protect the dyke water from fertilizer runoff and leaching a series
of management agreements have been set up by English Nature in the Walland
Marsh SSSI. This 3 year project reported here aimed to evaluate these management
practices. In addition an experiment was done to quantify the effectiveness
of 5m fertilizer free strips in protecting the dyke water from nitrate leaching.
Four contrasting farming practices were evaluated, permanent pasture,
restored pasture from arable, permanent arable with 5m buffer zone and
permanent pasture without a buffer zone. During the 1990,91 and 1991,92
leaching seasons, water movement and nitrate leaching were measured on these
four sites. During the 1992,93 season work was concentrated on the arable
site with 5m fertilizer free strips. An experiment was set up in which nitrate
was applied to the land in November, leaving differing widths of fertilizer free
grassland between the dyke and the crop. The aim of this experiment was to
measure the downward movement of the nitrate into the saturated zone and
its consequent movement through the saturated zone into the dyke.
Publisher: National Rivers Authority
Publication Date: 1993
Publication Place: Ashford
Subject Keywords: Site of Special Scientific Interest; Marshes; Wetlands; Fertilizers; Pollutants; Runoff; Nitrates
Geographic Keywords: Walland Marsh; Romney Marsh; Kent (county); East Sussex
Extent: 58
Permalink: http://www.environmentdata.org/archive/ealit:3960
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