The Moors Project covers some 21ha of land along the Redhill Brook, immediately east of Redhill, Surrey. The site forms an important wildlife and access corridor linking Redhill to the surrounding countryside beyond.
The site is designated a Site of Nature Conservation Importance (SNCI). The immediate area of the site has been extensively worked for minerals and lies within the wider Nutfield Ridge & Marsh Enhancement Project area, a partnership between the County Council and Mineral & Waste Operators including the Environment Agency. The northern part of the site is owned by Hepworth Properties, the southern by Biffa Waste Services.
The Moors Project is a £300,000 Biffaward funded project, designed to enhance the moors area for wildlife, visual and informal access perspectives. The site is being leased to the Surrey Wildlife Trust as a nature reserve.
The site seasonally floods, but this floodwater quickly disappears. A series of six lined pools have therefore been created across the site to retain the flood water for longer, and so enhance the wetland habitat. The scheme seeks to meet the objectives of the Surrey Flood plain grazing marsh Habitat
Action Plan (HAP). Tree and shrub planting will be undertaken over the winter, with wildflower planting and outstanding earthworks completed in 2002.
The National Cycleway runs along the southern boundary of the site, and a new footpath link (if not a cycleway link) is being included to upgrade and enhance public access around the site, but in a way that does not cause disturbance to the wildlife interest.
The project has very widespread support from the local community, and continues to act as a catalyst to inspire other enhancement schemes to be undertaken.
Note: the Environment Agency provided technical flood and flow data and analysis support to the project, as well as constructing two spillways and undertaking channel enhancements of the Redhill Brook.
For further details on restoration and enhancement schemes on mineral sites within Surrey please contact Simon Elson, Principal Environmental Enhancement Officer, via our contact centre telephone number 03456 009 009.