High levels of nitrates in the coastal waters around Lindisfarne National Nature Reserve are causing large mats of algae to form. Known as ‘macroalgae’, these dense and extensive mats cause huge problems for nature and biodiversity.
Although algae are a natural part of the intertidal ecosystem under normal conditions, excess nutrients in the water can cause it to become out-of-control and create an imbalance. It can smother mudflats, sandflats and seagrass in the summer months, suffocating underlying habitats and fauna and preventing overwintering birds from accessing their vital food sources.
WADER will be honing it’s focus on Budle Bay, Northumberland, which has been heavily affected by macroalgae in recent years. A shallow, sheltered bay at the confluence of Ross Low Burn, Waren Burn and other field-drains and streams, Budle Bay is an ideal environment for ‘trapping’ nutrients. We will conduct in-depth lab analysis of the algae followed by scientific modelling to better understand what is causing the excessive macroalgal growth. This will enable us to set up water quality interventions upstream.
WADER will also be trialling a variety of sensitive methods to remove the mats, with a view to potentially extracting more significant amounts if successful. In parallel, we will be exploring innovative ways to recycle the waste macro algae commercially – eg as fertiliser, biomass energy, bait and as dye pigment for the textiles industry. This is vitally important, as it will help WADER’s conservation work to be scalable and financially sustainable in the long term.
In the short-term we hope the approaches developed here will be used elsewhere within the project area, such as the Tweed estuary, and in the longer-term elsewhere in the UK and even worldwide.
We are tackling five major issues with innovative solutions. This will allow nature to thrive and be resilient from source-to-sea – now and in the future and especially in the context of a changing climate.
