80 - The Broads : Analysis: Landscape Attributes & Opportunities

Analysis supporting Statements of Environmental Opportunity

The following analysis section focuses on the landscape attributes and opportunities for this NCA.

Further analysis on ecosytem services for this NCA is contained in the Analysis: Ecosytem Services section.

Landscape attributes

The peat, loamy and clayey flood plain alluvial soils that are moderately fertile, with naturally high groundwater levels.

Justification for selection:

• 68 per cent of the land is classified Grade 2 or 3 Agricultural Land with the most fertile (Grade 1 soils) present in the rich loams on the tops of the valleys in the north.
• Where drainage has been carried out the fertile soils support productive farmland that is a mix of grassland and arable cultivation mostly for cereals and market garden crops, especially on the drained marshlands towards the coast, while on wetter areas grazing marsh is common.
• Agriculture is the third main economy in the Broads; the dryer valley sides and tops support cereal cultivation, creating areas of uniform colour and texture, which add to the NCAs sense of place.
• The historical pattern of wetland creation and vegetation is broadly reflected in the various soil types. Clay and silt soils are typical of flood plain grazing marsh, while the peat soils support fen, reed-bed and wet woodland habitats which are found in the upper reaches of the valleys.
• The flood plain fen peat soils, the undisturbed organic soils and the wet loamy and sandy soils with a peaty surface, offer a significant carbon storage resource.

Wide valleys containing winding waterways of the rivers Yare, Bure and Waveney, together with their tributaries the Thurne, Ant, Wensum and Chet and a mosaic of rich wetland riparian habitats of international significance.

Justification for selection:

• The rivers and the tributaries of the Bure, Yare, Waveney and Wensum, play a vital role in draining almost two thirds of Norfolk and much of North-east Suffolk into the North Sea.
• The rivers divide the flood plain, flowing between flood banks above the level of the surrounding land, contributing significantly to the landscape character and sense of place.
• The riverine ecological character supports mosaics of semi-natural habitat (fens, reedbeds, grazing marsh, wet woodland, salt marshes and intertidal mudflats) that are designated as part of the Broadland Special Area of Conservation and combine to form one of the largest marshland complexes in the United Kingdom.
• The rivers link semi-natural habitats assisting species migration throughout the area. For example the Broads is an internationally important site for barbastelle bats that use the network of linear features and wetland habitats as a foraging site.
• The associated wildlife and particularly the ornithological richness draws in many visitors who utilise the 200 km of navigate able waterways for recreation, underpinning the hire boat industry and ecotourism that is vital to the local economy.
• The proper functioning of the tidal river system is vital for the associated freshwater biodiversity which continues to face challenges from increasing salinity levels.

The shallow lakes (former flooded peat workings), referred to as ‘broads’ that are contained within the river valleys.

Justification for selection:

• The broads are the defining characteristic of the whole area. They vary in size, the majority are freshwater while others are saline supporting a diverse range of wildlife.
• The Broadland SAC designation recognises the broads’ ecological importance. Many are also designated as National Nature Reserves, such as Hickling Broad NNR and the Ant Broads and Marshes NNR.
• A number of the broads particularly those in the Upper Thurne catchment support rich aquatic plant communities (including an impressive community of stoneworts). Their critical importance is illustrated by the aquatic plant the holly-leaved naiad as this is the only location in England where this plant occurs. The open water habitats are also of international importance for otter, while Hickling Broad is a national key site for water vole.
• Historically the broads are important evidence of medieval peat excavations for fuel.
• Since the 1950s the broads have assured a legacy of tourism as a popular destination for recreation, principally for boating holidays which is a significant contributor to the local economy.
• Management is required to maintain the levels and quality of water within the broads to ensure that they continue to support biodiversity as well as contributing to the sense of place enjoyed by the many thousands of visitors annually.

The areas of broadleaf woodland present as copses and plantations.

Justification for selection:

• Although broadleaf woodland is generally scarce in the NCA, the upper valleys are where it has a strong hold, making up thick hedges, copses and plantations, often associated with settlement.
• Deciduous woodland contains some of the broads in the upper valleys leading to small scale contained views that provide contrast to the open lower flood plain.

Semi-natural fen carr woodland.

Justification for selection:

• The NCA’s wet woodland forms the most extensive tract of wet woodland (particularly alder carr) within eastern England and is designated as part of the Broadland SAC.
• The damp and shady carr woodland is a largely undisturbed wilderness; a tangle of woody species that provide an important wildlife habitat. The branches and deadwood support an abundance of shade-tolerant herbs, mosses, liverworts, lichens, fungi and ferns including the crested buckler fern, which this habitat is critically important for.
• Carr woodland softens the valley margins providing scale and a backdrop to the wetlands.
• The wet woodland provides a significant carbon sink locking up carbon both in the soil beneath the trees as well as in the trees themselves.

Wetland habitats including remnants of the traditionally wet grassland and expansive areas of reedbed, fen and grazing marsh.

Justification for selection:

• Remnants of the traditionally wet grassland that was once common within the Broads is present in the middle valley reaches, and significantly contributes to the landscape character with potential for enhancement and expansion.
• Vast open reedbeds and fen, especially those in the Halvergate Marshes, Upper Thurne, River Ant valley and Alderfen Broad area, are rich in texture, colour and rectilinear form, richly contributing to the sense of place. They combine to form 75 per cent of the remaining species-rich peat fen in lowland Britain and are designated as part of the Broadland SAC.
• The lower valleys contain the largest area of coastal and flood plain grazing marsh in Britain (12,288 ha) that form a distinctive coastal flood plain landscape. They range from brackish to freshwater along each river valley and across some of the marsh levels.
• Agricultural intensification has resulted in the loss of traditionally grazed marsh areas which in many places have been converted for arable production.
• The fenland areas support critically important populations of vascular plants; for example, fen orchid and milk parsley. Milk parsley is the sole larval food plant for the British sub-species of the swallowtail butterfly that is confined to The Broads NCA.
• The high amount of reed and sedge cover provides a valuable carbon sink.
• The internationally important areas of purple moor-grass and rush pasture occur at several marshland locations including the Ludham to Potter Heigham marshes and Bure marshes which also are a nationally important site for water voles. Saline grassland communities of national importance, including significant populations of sea barley and slender hare’s ear are restricted to the marshes adjacent to Breydon Water.
• The marshland network of drainage ditches links wetland habitats and is of significance for rare plants including tubular water-dropwort, greater water parsnip, sharp-leaved pondweed and water soldier which itself is of importance for the rare Norfolk hawker dragonfly.
• The open, treeless, productive landscape of today’s open marshland is historically important resulting from relatively recent land reclamation from marsh which began in the 13th century.
• These habitats support a nationally important assemblage of breeding waders, including bittern, lapwing and wintering water birds which occur in internationally important numbers.
• These habitats are heavily influenced by both management and the hydrological regime of the broads and are subsequently vulnerable to the effects land management and climate change

The coastline with its long sweeping stretches of shifting sand and shingle, coastal dunes, coastal dune heaths and soft cliffs.

Justification for selection:

• The nationally important dynamic coastal landscape and seascape is semi-natural in character, contributing to the remote and wild sense of place. Its special qualities are recognised by approximately two thirds (1,694 ha) being designated as part of the North Norfolk AONB.
• The coastline supports stretches of open sandy beach that provides an import recreational resource that is well used by local residents and tourists for walking and bathing.
• The beach and coastal dunes are a natural coastal defence that helps protect the large area of low-lying hinterland from coastal flooding during storm events.
• The coastal habitats including beach, soft cliff, embryonic shifting dunes, wet dune slacks, and coastal dune heaths are important for wildlife including; golden plover, little tern, natterjack toad and common and grey seal and are afforded a high degree of designation at both national and international levels.
• The dunes represent the most easterly dune heaths in the United Kingdom and the best example of an acid dune system on the east coast. The Winterton-Horsey dunes are designated as a SAC and the Great Yarmouth North Denes dunes are designated as a SPA.
• The dunes are an important geodiversity feature illustrating dynamic Aeolian sedimentation. The wider southern section demonstrates a sequence from mobile fore-dunes to fixed dunes.
• The soft sediment cliffs at Happisburgh are ever changing geological exposures that demonstrate the stratigraphy of the area providing a valuable educational resource as well as containing internationally important archaeological evidence for the earliest human occupation.
• Erosion of the soft cliffs provides a vital source of sediment that maintains the beaches and sand dunes further south at Horsey, which intern provide a natural coastal defence.

The sheltered, remnant embanked estuary of Breydon Water.

Justification for selection:

• The estuary gives open views across the only tidal mudflat on the east coast of Norfolk.
• The intertidal mudflats and coastal salt marsh are of international importance for wintering water birds including golden plover and avocet. Their importance for wildlife is recognised by the designations of Broadland Breydon Water Ramsar Site and Broadland Breydon Water SPA.
• The intertidal flats help illustrate the long history of drainage that has helped shape the Broads landscape as they were reclaimed from the estuary many years ago.

The traditional settlement pattern and historic built environment features.

Justification for selection:

• There is a clear and visible connection between drainage of the land, the underlying geodiversity, topography and settlement patterns which add to the strong sense of place.
• Dense clusters of small villages/hamlets (for example Langley, Hardley and Rockland) are characteristic of the slightly elevated drier land of the valley sides and tops, while the open marshes are traditionally unsettled.
• Small boatyards and marinas such as at Somerleyton, Sutton and Ludham Bridge form part of the traditional riverside scenery, alongside extensive modern boatyard/marina developments (such as Brundall, St Olaves and Wroxham).
• Traditional buildings constructed of flint, pebble and brick, often topped with Norfolk water reed thatch add to the picturesque nature of the NCA.
• Dutch and Flemish architectural influences in brick and pantile are common, especially in towns such as Beccles adding to the sense of history and place.
• The churches along the Yare and Waveney are a legacy of medieval settlement and form distinctive, vertical features on the higher land dotted around the vast expanse of the open marshes. They have considerable impact within the landscape providing a sense of distance, adding to the sense of history and place.
• Traditional drainage pump complexes along the main water courses form strong landscape features and are an important part of the industrial archaeology of the area providing historic evidence of the mechanisation of the marshland reclamation and drainage.

Some parts of the Broads, especially the north of the NCA, retain a high level of tranquillity and a low level of intrusion from urban influences and light pollution.

Justification for selection:

• The sense of tranquillity and wildness is integral to the distinctiveness of the Broads landscape character. The least disturbed areas are found within the vast expanse of the marshes (and particularly within the relatively inaccessible flood plains of Halvergate and the Upper Thurne). The large areas of semi-natural habitat combined with the limited settlement mean much of the NCA retains a stark, remote, wilderness quality, with a scale and sense of space that is unusual in lowland Britain.
• The high levels of tranquillity benefit bird species such as the bittern as well as visitors attracted to the area that come to view the special wildlife, although the NCA has experienced a sharp decline in tranquillity levels since the 1960s with tranquillity and intrusion an issue through and around the main communication corridors as well as the main bustling tourist centres (for example Brundall, St Olaves and Wroxham).

Landscape opportunities

• Protect the open character of the marshland landscape with its long and expansive views and big skies as well as the character their more enclosed pastoral character.
• Protect areas with a strong sense of remoteness, ‘wildness’ and tranquillity, where intrusion, including light pollution, is low to ensure this valued resource is maintained. Such areas include the flood plains of Halvergate and the Upper Thurne and the coastal dunes and heaths between Eccles and Winterton-on-Sea.
• Manage development and recreation to reduce its impact on tranquillity. Protect identified existing rural areas where tranquillity and intrusion, including light pollution, are low to ensure this valued resource is maintained.
• Manage and expand the mosaics of wetland habitats, including fens, reedbeds, grazing marsh, wet woodland, salt marshes, and intertidal mudflats for their contribution to biodiversity and geodiversity.
• Manage and enhance the wet woodland in the valley bottoms and broadleaf plantations in the upper valleys for their contribution to the wooded landscape character, their wildlife value, and their contribution to retention of greenhouse gases.
• Plan to adapt agriculture in the river valleys to focus away from the river edge and to adopt complementary land management practices for wildlife, such as haymaking.
• Conserve, manage and expand semi-natural habitats that occur along the coast including embryonic shifting dunes, dune slacks and freshwater pools, coastal dune heaths including dry dune heath and birch scrub.
• Allow for the continuing dynamic natural coastal processes, and maintain and conserve the range of estuarine, coastal and wetland habitats that contribute to landscape character and support the wide range of wildlife.
• Ensure that the important network of ditches and dykes is managed to encourage emergent vegetation thus forming important landscape features and increasing habitat connectivity.
• Plan to reduce impacts of agriculture and development on the riverine systems, carefully managing water availability, water quality so that existing wetland habitats are protected from saline incursion, sedimentation and pollution.
• Seek opportunities to extend semi-natural habitats to help alleviate flooding while benefiting wildlife.
• Maintain the quality and knowledge of archaeological evidence and historic built features across the NCA, conserving and interpreting the historic landscape features, especially the derelict drainage pumps and mills that line the river banks.
• Plan for land management practices to be sympathetic to potential historic evidence in the area and enhance public awareness of the breadth of historic wealth of the Broads.
• Seek opportunities to interpret the particular landscape, seascape character and history, and provide opportunities for more people to understand and enjoy.
• Work with landowners, farmers and businesses to manage and enhance sustainable tourism and recreational opportunities for local people and visitors alike to enjoy the Broads’ landscape and heritage assets, ensuring a high quality experience for all users and increase interpretation at key locations to help explain the Broads’ landscape through time and the importance of its ecology.
• Conserve the high quality and productive soils for continued agricultural production while ensuring that the agricultural landscapes make a greater contribution to wildlife, especially farmland birds, avoiding or reducing cultivation where soil erosion is a risk.
• Improve access, especially where it is possible to link existing path networks and sites with towns and villages, and provide interpretation, to enable more people to enjoy and understand the landscape, its underlying geology and its history and functions.
• Promote the use of traditional, locally sourced building materials such as water reed thatch and the incorporation of vernacular styles in restoring traditional buildings and structures.
• Where new development is considered; protect the distinctive landscape qualities of the Broads ensuring that new development enhances landscape character and secures multiple benefits through the provision and management of high quality green infrastructure networks where possible.
• Seek opportunities to enhance landscape character and biodiversity through the creation of new habitats and recreational and educational opportunities to increase people’s understanding and enjoyment of local archaeology and geodiversity and its contribution to the landscape.