Orford Ness Information Buildg Transfer to National Trust pt3 Dry Land to Wetland DSC01846
Orford Ness was purchased by the War Department in 1913. Between August 1913 and 1916, the southern half of King's Marsh was drained, ditches and the site and levelled to form airfields to the left and right of the road. The site was ready to receive its first aircraft in 1915. Roads were constructed and buildings erected for 612 people who would be stationed here. In the 1970s parts of the marsh were further drained foe agriculture and cropped until the mid 1980s.
70 years of intense military experimentation left a palimsest of physical traces on the landscape. Between 1938 and 1959, a majority of the firing trials were concentrated in the northern airfield, part of which is now reedbed. During the 1950s the King's Marsh was used as an experimental range for recording the flight paths of air-launched rockets. Between 1953 and 1966 six large test cells and most of the other buildings were built to carry out environmental tests on the atomic bomb. Huge labs were built to contain conventional explosive forces in case of accidents in the initiator systems.
RADAR system architecture and from 1968-73 work started on the top-secret Anglo-American System 'over-the-horizon' (OTH) backscatter radar project, code-name 'Cobra Mist'. From the 1970s the Ness was home to RAF Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD). Large quantities of munitions were destroyed on the Ness, an often noisy process. The last service personnel to be based on site left in 1987, opening the way for vandals and the foolhardy curious. However, the Ness remained officially closed to the public, with the occasional trial on new equipment conducted as the need arose.
In 1993 the Ministry of Defence sold Orford Ness to the National Trust. By then, the importance of the landscape of the spit and the wildlife it supported were becoming apparent, in particular the internationally rare and extremely fragile coastal vegetated shingle. The site required careful decommissioning, removal of live explosives and dangerous materials & structures but eventually a compromise was reached between 'cleansing' the site and cost. Public access is necessarily restricted to safe areas and to safeguard the needs of the landscape & wildlife ecosystems being established. The Trust now carefully protects its natural and historic features, but the re-wilding of the site takes priority over the military buildings, which are left to decay with a few exceptions to house exhibition material. The National Trust is in partnership with the RSPB at Havergate Island and is supported by the EU LIFE + Nature & Biodiversity programme. The Nature Reserves are part of the Natura 2000 network of top priority European conservation sites.
The site has been returned to a wetland again and improvements are being continuously made to two important habitats
- coastal grazing marsh (which attracts wildfowl & wading birds such as avocet, redshank & lapwing)
- brackish (salty) lagoons.
The brackish lagoons & specialised invertebrates that live there are an important feature, which have become increasingly rare in the UK & Europe. Work began on digging new lagoons in 1998.
The shingle spit is one of the largest and finest examples of vegetated shingle in the world and a refuge for wildlife year round.
The rare and fragile ridge & swale structure and plant communities including sea pea and lichens are easily damaged by trampling. Ground-nesting species like the little tern are vulnerable to disturbance.
Managing and optimising water levels when weather patterns have become increasingly unpredictable with climate change is challenging. Low spring & summer rainfall with drying winds have resulted in the marshes drying out too early in the season, with wader chicks being unable to feed from the hard ground. Past management has been to keep winter rain rather than pump it off, but this has caused some damage to vegetation and the affected bird species. The old drainage and circulation pumps were inadequate to regulate water levels. A 4-year EU LIFE + funded project began in 2010. It deepened existing pools and scrapes, and created a circulating system of ditches, sluices & pumps to keep levels correct and retain moisture in the correct locations throughout the seasons. This will help to combat changing climactic conditions and support better environments for key bird species such as avocet, redshank, godwit and spoonbill. Monitoring population levels is important to confirm that the new wetland systems and interventions are performing well and as expected - bird numbers have improved.
Within the grazing marshes on Orford Ness NT has created 3ha of new lagoons, restored another 3ha of lagoons and created 2.5km of new ditches to connect these together. These are blending in well and along with the grassland, which is managed by sheep grazing and cutting for hay, and are providing a rich mosaic of habitats for wildlife.
Orford Ness Information Buildg Transfer to National Trust pt3 Dry Land to Wetland DSC01846
Orford Ness was purchased by the War Department in 1913. Between August 1913 and 1916, the southern half of King's Marsh was drained, ditches and the site and levelled to form airfields to the left and right of the road. The site was ready to receive its first aircraft in 1915. Roads were constructed and buildings erected for 612 people who would be stationed here. In the 1970s parts of the marsh were further drained foe agriculture and cropped until the mid 1980s.
70 years of intense military experimentation left a palimsest of physical traces on the landscape. Between 1938 and 1959, a majority of the firing trials were concentrated in the northern airfield, part of which is now reedbed. During the 1950s the King's Marsh was used as an experimental range for recording the flight paths of air-launched rockets. Between 1953 and 1966 six large test cells and most of the other buildings were built to carry out environmental tests on the atomic bomb. Huge labs were built to contain conventional explosive forces in case of accidents in the initiator systems.
RADAR system architecture and from 1968-73 work started on the top-secret Anglo-American System 'over-the-horizon' (OTH) backscatter radar project, code-name 'Cobra Mist'. From the 1970s the Ness was home to RAF Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD). Large quantities of munitions were destroyed on the Ness, an often noisy process. The last service personnel to be based on site left in 1987, opening the way for vandals and the foolhardy curious. However, the Ness remained officially closed to the public, with the occasional trial on new equipment conducted as the need arose.
In 1993 the Ministry of Defence sold Orford Ness to the National Trust. By then, the importance of the landscape of the spit and the wildlife it supported were becoming apparent, in particular the internationally rare and extremely fragile coastal vegetated shingle. The site required careful decommissioning, removal of live explosives and dangerous materials & structures but eventually a compromise was reached between 'cleansing' the site and cost. Public access is necessarily restricted to safe areas and to safeguard the needs of the landscape & wildlife ecosystems being established. The Trust now carefully protects its natural and historic features, but the re-wilding of the site takes priority over the military buildings, which are left to decay with a few exceptions to house exhibition material. The National Trust is in partnership with the RSPB at Havergate Island and is supported by the EU LIFE + Nature & Biodiversity programme. The Nature Reserves are part of the Natura 2000 network of top priority European conservation sites.
The site has been returned to a wetland again and improvements are being continuously made to two important habitats
- coastal grazing marsh (which attracts wildfowl & wading birds such as avocet, redshank & lapwing)
- brackish (salty) lagoons.
The brackish lagoons & specialised invertebrates that live there are an important feature, which have become increasingly rare in the UK & Europe. Work began on digging new lagoons in 1998.
The shingle spit is one of the largest and finest examples of vegetated shingle in the world and a refuge for wildlife year round.
The rare and fragile ridge & swale structure and plant communities including sea pea and lichens are easily damaged by trampling. Ground-nesting species like the little tern are vulnerable to disturbance.
Managing and optimising water levels when weather patterns have become increasingly unpredictable with climate change is challenging. Low spring & summer rainfall with drying winds have resulted in the marshes drying out too early in the season, with wader chicks being unable to feed from the hard ground. Past management has been to keep winter rain rather than pump it off, but this has caused some damage to vegetation and the affected bird species. The old drainage and circulation pumps were inadequate to regulate water levels. A 4-year EU LIFE + funded project began in 2010. It deepened existing pools and scrapes, and created a circulating system of ditches, sluices & pumps to keep levels correct and retain moisture in the correct locations throughout the seasons. This will help to combat changing climactic conditions and support better environments for key bird species such as avocet, redshank, godwit and spoonbill. Monitoring population levels is important to confirm that the new wetland systems and interventions are performing well and as expected - bird numbers have improved.
Within the grazing marshes on Orford Ness NT has created 3ha of new lagoons, restored another 3ha of lagoons and created 2.5km of new ditches to connect these together. These are blending in well and along with the grassland, which is managed by sheep grazing and cutting for hay, and are providing a rich mosaic of habitats for wildlife.