Funds for Foulshaw Moss Reserve (From The Westmorland Gazette)

Funds for Foulshaw Moss Reserve

9:04am Friday 8th July 2005 in Farm & country By Ruth Lythe

A "WONDERFUL" haven for wildlife is to be extended and restored thanks to a £476,000 grant awarded at a ceremony in the House of Lords.

The money was presented by Lord Clarke of Hampstead to Cumbria Wildlife Trust and will enable the charity to carry out important peat bog restoration work at its Foulshaw Moss Nature Reserve, near Witherslack.

The cash was donated by the environmental grant-making charity, GrantScape.

Development manager for CWT Helen Haydock said: "This funding from GrantScape will enable us to complete major restoration works at Foulshaw Moss Nature Reserve and is a huge step forward for the trust in delivering our conservation aims.

"The project has also been generously supported by many of the trust's major donors, reflecting the backing for the project at a local level and among our members."

CWT reserves officer John Dunbavin said: "We are going to create a large new area of reed bed, adjacent to the southern edge of the nature reserve. With 17 hectares to work on, this will become the largest reed bed in Cumbria and will aim to provide important satellite homes to young bitterns from Leighton Moss Nature Reserve. We are also keen to purchase land close to the nature reserve and expand in this wonderful wildlife haven."

After buying the moss in 1999, the trust started one of the largest peat bog restoration projects in Britain. The first phase was completed in 2004 with the removal of 190 hectares of conifer trees. The subsequent phase will take place over the next three years. This will involve blocking the numerous drains that cross the bog.

Raising the bog's water levels in this way will restart the peat-forming process and help the growth of peat bog plants and encourage insects.

The project will mean that Foulshaw Moss is restored as a haven for wildlife. CWT officers also hope it will become a more attractive place to visit.