This area includes the Eastern Yar and also Wroxall Stream and Scotchells Brook, both which feed into it.
An initial public meeting for the Eastern Yar was held in April 2014. Subsequently a report was commissioned to identify possible watercourse improvements and a further meeting was held in December 2014. The report was produced in 2015 and identified a number of opportunities, but did not include developed projects. The River Restoration Centre also visited the water-course and discussed the feasibility of some of these options. The report (LINK) has since become the blueprint for restoration and the following projects are being developed / delivered:
- Gateway to the East – Use of active river restoration techniques to improve Fish passage and create hydromorphological changes that will diversify in-channel and marginal habitats and help bring to good ecological status as well as connecting rivers with their floodplain. Focussed on the area between Horringford Bridge and Alverstone Bridge
- Wetland Restoration – Improvement and restoration of wetland sites in the East Yar Valley. Improvements of habitats including floodplain grazing marsh, wet fens and reedbeds at Sandown Meadows and private landowner sites including Alverstone Marsh SSSI, several SINCs and the Donkey Sanctuary.
In addition, once earlier actions are delivered for the Island Plan it should be relatively easy to take forward the following action
- To protect Scotchells Brook and urban parts of the Eastern Yar by working with the LPA to incorporate appropriate policies
Brading and Bembridge have produced Neighbourhood Development Plans but these do not identify any projects relating to water-courses.
Links
Atkins: Understanding the Eastern Yar
Arup: Eastern Yar Action Plan