RSPB leads bid to get the East's coastline named a UNESCO World Heritage site
It's because of how important the area is for migrating birds
The RSPB is leading a bid to get parts of the East's coastline named a UNESCO World Heritage site.
It wants the wetlands of England's east coast to get the same level of protection as places like the Grand Canyon or Great Barrier Reef.
An application for wetlands along the East of England's coast to be added to the UK’s Tentative List of World Heritage sites has been submitted to the Department of Culture, Media and Sport.
It comes after a new report indicates the east coast is one of the world’s most important places for nature.
The review, by ABPmer, described the English east coast as being of ‘outstanding universal value’ due to the world class network of coastal wetlands which support globally important migratory bird populations.
Around 1 million birds are reliant on our east coast each winter, using the shores and inland marshes to shelter from the harsh conditions in Scandinavia, Canada, Greenland and Siberia.
In the spring, the East welcomes around 200,000 migrating and breeding birds, and in the autumn, around 700,000 birds make the area home.
The RSPB says the shorelines provide a rich buffet of invertebrates which bird species rely on in the winter months and refuel on in the spring and autumn as they make a pitstop on their gruelling migratory journeys.
Further from the shoreline, they say marshes offer valuable roosting sites and refuges for birds at high tide, as well as nesting grounds.
They also provide foraging and nursery grounds for fish and a wide range of other benefits for society, including carbon capture and storage, flood defence, recreation, tourism and fisheries.
Steve Rowland, RSPB England Area Manager for Norfolk, said: “Here in Norfolk, The Wash is the UKs most important estuary for wild birds which depend on its mudflats to feed during their globe spanning migrations, which are happening right now. The spectacular sight of the murmurations of tens of thousands of shorebirds at RSPB Snettisham nature reserve is one of the seven wonders of British wildlife.”
The application to join the UK’s Tentative List of Natural World Heritage sites has been submitted in response to the governments review of potential sites launched earlier this year. This list forms the basis of the UK’s World Heritage site nominations to UNESCO (United National Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation).
James Robinson, Director of Conservation, Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust, said: “This bid recognises the incredible value of wetlands for nature, people and the planet. At WWT we witness how important protected wetlands are in providing vital food and shelter for the tens of thousands of wild water birds who arrive at our reserves in spectacular flocks every year on their annual winter migrations.
"We know how fantastic the county’s wetlands are but for them to be recognised on a world stage would help us all speak up for these habitats and the importance of protecting and celebrating them.”
Currently there are just two Natural World Heritage sites in the UK; Dorset and East Devon Coast and the Giant’s Causeway and Causeway Coast, in addition to two UK overseas territories in the Gough Islands in the South Atlantic and Henderson Island in the South Pacific.
If accepted the east coast could join this list which also includes some of the world’s most iconic sites, such as the Great Barrier Reef, the Galapagos Islands and Mount Kilimanjaro.
A decision on whether the east coast wetlands will be added to the UK’s Tentative List is expected by early 2023.