The impact of sand extraction at Formby Point ... - Sefton Council

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8 infilled and supports ruderal vegetation of Common Ragwort, Evening-primrose (Oenothera) and Hound’s-tongue (Cynoglossum officinale). Otherwise, the area has a rather mossy, open, Rabbit-grazed sward of acid grassland with a scattered population of Smooth Cat’s-ear. Gateley & Michell (2004) report trends at Lifeboat Road since the previous NVC survey in 1988/89. Thus, mixed scrub/woodland has spread over many areas of open dune and slack in the eastern and southern parts of the site, while former areas of open water and slack vegetation are diminished. Even Wicks Lake was dry at the time of their field work in 2004. 2.3.2. Ravenmeols LNR South of Lifeboat Road, a large area of Ravenmeols dunes, owned by Sefton Council, has also been subject to past sand-winning, the area affected being more readily determined by reference to Lidar mapping than to the 1945 and 1961 aerial photographs. On the ground, an obvious quarry edge can be seen where taller dunes rise to the west, north and south, the eastern boundary being much more difficult to determine, partly due to dense scrub colonisation. Smith (1980) conducted the first detailed ecological survey of this area, making reference to several wet-slacks which seemed to have originated from sand-winning and also to areas of small hummocks, north of Alexandra Road, which probably represent overburden tipped in already extracted sites. It is also clear that large quantities of sand were removed from the frontal dunes, working in a south-easterly direction from the shore. Smith (1980) refers to a “blow-through” cutting though the main mobile-dune ridge about 250m south of Lifeboat Road, which evidently had been caused by sandwinning. At the time of his survey, this feature was 50m wide at its seaward end and blown sand was smothering the adjacent fixed-dunes. This blow-through was brushwood fenced and planted with Marram from 1979 under the auspices of the Sefton Coast Management Scheme.
9 The vegetation of the main quarry area was mapped and its (pre-NVC) communities described by Smith (1980). Twenty-seven years on, the area is essentially similar; a slightly undulating topography supports a mosaic of grassy fixed-dune on the higher ground and extensive areas of fixed-dune with Creeping Willow in the lower-lying areas. The latter community corresponds with the NVC’s SD16 (Salix repens – Holcus lanatus dune-slack) (dryer type) while the former is mapped as SD7 (Ammophila arenaria – Festuca rubra semi-fixed dune) by Gateley & Michell (2004). To the east, the Creeping Willow is frequently accompanied by Tuberous Pea (Lathyrus tuberosus), an attractive alien which has been known here since the 1920s (Smith 1980). The nationally rare Dune Helleborine (Epipactis dunensis) occurs sparingly amongst the Creeping Willow but none was seen during this study. Especially to the north and east are scattered clumps of scrub, comprising mainly White Poplar (Populus alba), Sea Buckthorn (Hippophae rhamnoides), Grey Willow, Fine Osier, Balm of Gilead, birch and Hawthorn (Crataegus monogyna). The White Poplar and Sea Buckthorn clumps are suckering freely into adjacent habitats. Several specimens of Salix x friesiana were recorded. Interestingly, at various points along the western and southern quarry boundaries there are large willow patches, dominated by Fine Osier and Grey Willow, but also including Osier (S. viminalis), Goat Willow (S. caprea) and S. x friesiana. Their establishment may have been encouraged by percolation of water from the adjacent high dunes. Three wet-slacks were mapped by Smith (1978a); these together with three damp slacks were sampled by Smith (1980) using NVC methodology. They flooded in 1977 and, especially deeply, in 1982 when Natterjack Toads bred successfully. In 1980, all these slacks had a diverse vegetation, though most were dominated by Creeping Willow. This is still the case, although the slacks now appear to be dryer, as would be expected after 27 years of sediment accumulation. The largest and richest was slack 1, described by Smith (1980) as having Creeping Willow around the edge, which soon gives way to a heavily Rabbit-grazed sward dominated by bryophytes together with a high diversity of lowgrowing vascular plants. As in 1980, a well-used informal footpath runs the length of the
Page 1 and 2: 1 The impact of sand extraction at
Page 3 and 4: • Rapid, up-to-date assessment of
Page 5 and 6: 5 jackii) with a smaller component
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Page 11 and 12: 11 on the Sefton Coast occur here b
Page 13 and 14: leaved Wintergreen (Pyrola rotundif
Page 15 and 16: 15 Slack 2 was progressively invade
Page 17 and 18: are often accompanied by nationally
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Page 21 and 22: Creeping Willow nearby seems to be
Page 23 and 24: 6.3.1. Smaller-scale 23 • Cut bac
Page 25 and 26: Smith, P.H. (1978c). Cabin Hill - a

The impact of sand extraction at Formby Point ... - Sefton Council

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