ReMeMaRe Postcards from our coast 25-26 - Flipbook - Page 9
Monitoring of donor seagrass
meadow
Credit: Essex Wildlife Trust
Case Study - Essex Seagrass Project
Project Summary
Seagrass meadows filter sediment, nutrients and pollutants through their root systems,
significantly improving water quality. However, surveys estimate a 98% decline in Essex
estuaries since the 1970s. Since 2023, this project has delivered restoration trials at St
Lawrence Bay in the Blackwater Estuary to identify the most effective methods for
restoring Zostera noltii. Work included seagrass transplants, environmental monitoring,
habitat suitability assessments, stakeholder engagement, drone surveys, sediment and
elevation analysis, water quality sampling, and Recreational Activity Surveys (RAS). The
project now provides a foundation for larger-scale restoration through the Transforming
the Thames programme.
Outcomes
150 seagrass transplant
cores planted
Identification of key
restoration success
measures
Drone surveys to map
seagrass extent and
analysis
Environmental baseline
data collected
144 recreational activity
surveys completed
4 volunteers recruited
Engagement with 7
community groups
13 outreach events
Outputs
0.01 ha intertidal seagrass
meadow created
0.13 ha intertidal seagrass
meadow under ongoing
monitoring programme
Financials
£46,298 WEIF
£12,932 Partnership funding
Lead EA Contact
Nicola Shearer
Partners
Essex Wildlife Trust
Project Seagrass
Zoological Society of London
University of Essex
Seagrass cores ready for transplantation
Credit: Project Seagrass
Taking seagrass
cores from donor
meadow (left) and
planting in
restoration area
(below) Credit:
Essex Wildlife Trust
