Sediment characteristics of a restored saltmarsh and mudflat in a managed realignment scheme in southeast England

Published source details Kadiri M., Spencer K.L., Heppell C.M. & Fletcher P. (2011) Sediment characteristics of a restored saltmarsh and mudflat in a managed realignment scheme in southeast England. Hydrobiologia, 672, 79-89.
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This study is summarised as evidence for the following.

	Action	Category
	Facilitate tidal exchange to restore/create brackish/salt marshes from other land uses Action Link

Facilitate tidal exchange to restore/create brackish/salt marshes from other land uses

A site comparison study in 2007 of two salt marshes in the UK (Kadiri et al. 2011) reported that a restored salt marsh (where the sea wall was breached after depositing sediment) contained fewer plant species and less vegetation cover than a natural salt marsh. Statistical significance was not assessed. After 15 months, the restored marsh contained only one plant species: glasswort Salicornia europaea. Its cover was 11%. A nearby natural marsh contained eight plant species: mostly common saltmarsh grass Puccinellia maritima (50% cover), sea lavender Limonium vulgare (23% cover) and common cordgrass Spartina anglica (10% cover). Glasswort cover was 2%. The study also noted differences in sediment properties, including salinity and organic matter content, between the restored and natural marsh. Methods: In October 2007, plant species and their cover were recorded in ten 0.5-m² quadrats, in each of two salt marshes. One marsh had been restored by depositing dredged sediment onto farmland, to raise the ground to an appropriate level for marsh vegetation (May 2005), then breaching the sea wall to restore tidal exchange (July 2006). The other, natural marsh had never been tidally restricted. Note that this study evaluates the combined effect of depositing sediment and restoring tidal exchange.

(Summarised by: Nigel Taylor)