BMC Access & Conservation Trust supports North Wales seagrass restoration
The BMC's Access & Conservation Trust has donated £15,000 to the Seagrass Ocean Rescue programme in the popular climbing and hiking location of North Wales as part of The Climate Project.
Thanks to the recent donation from the BMC's Official Outdoor Retailer, Cotswold Outdoor from their Pennies at the till campaign (full story here), the BMC's Access & Conservation Trust have been able to donate £15,000 to Seagrass Ocean Rescue in North Wales as part of The Climate Project. Don't forget, BMC members get 15% off at Cotswold Outdoor, Snow+Rock and Runners Need - find out how here.
This donation will extend the employment of Living Seas Project Officer, Rhys Bowen, by over a year. Rhys monitors and restores several key seagrass meadows and restoration sites across North Wales, below popular sea cliff climbing routes and coastal hiking paths. These meadows play a vital role in national marine conservation, carbon storage and reducing pathogens and pollutants in our water.
Impact of the donation
BMC Head of Access & Environment, Dr. Cath Flitcroft, says, "Approximately 92% of the UK's seagrass meadows have been lost over the last 100 years due to coastal development and seawater pollution. As an important carbon sink, habitat and water purifier, the BMC's Access & Conservation Trust believes that restoring seagrass meadows has a significant impact on the fight against the human-induced climate change and environmental degradation which is having a huge impact on many mountain areas, for example the Alpine glaciers."
Topping up original funding from the North Wales Wildlife Trust, the BMC Access & Conservation Trust's contribution will extend Rhys's role as Living Seas Project Officer for an extra 13 months, until October 2026. This follows on from Rhys’ involvement in the programme during 2024 where he worked as a Marine Futures Intern at Seagrass Ocean Rescue's partner, the North Wales Wildlife Trust.
Rhys' role currently involves:
- Supporting winter seagrass planting events (led by our North Wales project lead)
- Supporting ongoing restoration trials
- Conducting winter monitoring and assessments
- Training and supervising volunteers
- Assisting with preparation for the next seed collection season
We asked Project Seagrass (who coodrinate the Seagrass Ocean Rescue project in North Wales) to share more about their work and in particular, the importance of Rhys' continued involvement with their work in North Wales. Scroll down for more details.
What is The Climate Project?
The Climate Project, from the BMC's Access & Conservation Trust, is a collection of nature-based solutions and resources to fight the climate crisis. It includes our long-term commitment to planting sphagnum in the Peak District with Moors for the Future Partnership as part of their peatland restoration programme, and our latest addition - planting seagrass with Seagrass Ocean Rescue in North Wales.
Seagrass facts
- Absorbs and sequesters carbon
- Purifies seawater from pollutants
- Provides vital habitats for marine life
- Helps preserve endangered species
- Helps increase ecosystem biodiversity
- Meadows help slow coastal erosion
Why is the North Wales coastline such an important area for seagrass conservation work?
The North Wales coastline is an important area for continued seagrass conservation and restoration. Historically there used to be an abundance of seagrass in North Wales, but over the past decade, many existing meadows have been lost or degraded. This means that the associated ecosystem services once present in those areas have also been lost. By restoring these lost meadows and preserving existing ones, we can aid the restoration of many of these lost ecosystem services, including; reducing coastal erosion, creating increased habitat for commercially important fauna, and facilitating increased organic carbon storage in the coastal zone.
How was your annual seagrass seed collection event?
It was another highly successful year for the annual seed collection in Porthdinllaen, Llyn Peninsular, North Wales this July, attracting both eager returning volunteers and enthusiastic new participants. This event is a cornerstone of our seagrass restoration and research work. It provides the seeds we need to restore seagrass meadows and involves local volunteers in protecting and restoring this critical marine habitat. By engaging the public, we also raise awareness of the importance of seagrass.
Rhys, who first joined us last year as an intern with the Wildlife Trust, played a crucial role in leading volunteer snorkelling groups to collect seeds. His training and experience meant we could support more volunteers in taking part in the intertidal seed collection. His unique position, bridging both Project Seagrass and the North Wales Wildlife Trust has strengthened collaboration between our organisations and helped unify the Seagrass Ocean Rescue project as a whole.
We were extremely grateful to have some of the BMC members come and join us this year to aid in the seed collection efforts.
We also welcomed the Deputy First Minister who is very supportive of the work - You can read more about it here: One million seeds to be collected off north Wales coast as part of seagrass restoration project
How many seeds were collected?
We collected 185kg worth of seagrass reproductive material over 14 days. Judging by the amount of material collected, and from our prior seed collections, we estimate that we have collected anywhere between 800,000-1200,000 seeds. This estimation will become more accurate once the seeds have been processed.
Seeds are gathered intertidally by volunteers and staff through wading and snorkeling, ensuring no damage to the plants. The seeds are collected by hand. The event gathers around 30 volunteers per session. We begin with a briefing about what we are doing and why it is important we then divide into smaller groups where the volunteers are shown how to safely pick the seeds. The volunteers stay collecting seeds for around an hour in the water at low tide. The majority of the seeds are, however, collected by trained scuba divers working in deeper areas.
This year, 97 volunteers took part. We always fill all available spaces quickly, showing just how popular the event is. However, the number of volunteers we can get involved is limited by the staff we have available to supervise water based activities. Funding roles like Rhys’s would allow us to continue to offer more opportunities in future.
And you monitor the seagrass quarterly?
Seagrass at the North Wales restoration sites are monitored at several points thought the calendar year. After planting in spring, an initial monitoring is carried out in summer to assess the initial success of planting by counting shoot densities. Later in the year, during late summer/early autumn, a more comprehensive monitoring trip is carried out on the planted seagrass where we collect multiple metrics, including shoot density, leaf length and algae cover. This allows us to compare methods, and to assess which sites and methods might show the best chance of success moving forward, allowing us to plan the next years planting. In the following year we carry out an additional monitoring trip where we assess what has survived over winter, this is important as it allows us to understand whether the planted seagrass can survive harsh conditions, if so then the chances of successful restoration are much higher.
Additionally we also monitor the seagrass meadow at Porthdinllaen twice annually to detect any long term and short-term trends, positive or negative.
Rhys participates in all the North Wales monitoring field trips, and leads the June monitoring and the Seagrass Watch monitoring at Porthdinllaen.
And you carry out experimental restoration trials?
We test different an array of planting methods at different sites in North Wales, to assess the best planting methods for any particular location. This allows us to iteratively improve our chances of success with each subsequent trial and increase our knowledge into the parameters that make suitable restoration sites.
Rhys is an integral member of our North Wales team and is actively involved in the planting of our experimental trials, and is also in the process of conducting a literature review into the drivers of flowering and seed production in temperate eelgrass (a type of seagrass). This will inform both our understanding of how restoration sites establish in the long term and future experimental trials.
Support seagrass now!
Help us plant more carbon-locking seagrass by donating to The Climate Project
Where do your funds go?
£5 buys a pair of work gloves
£10 buys 10 hessian planting sacks
£25 buys a seagrass seeder tool
£50 buys a pair of mud shoes to reduce trampling impact
£150 buys equipment to test water quality at site
£250 buys a seed maturation cage to overwinter the seeds
£1,000 buys a drone survey to monitor growth
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