Ecological Resilience Programme: Open for Funding Applications

Project Criteria

Projects will need to meet the following criteria:

• Improve the ecological resilience of the Test and Itchen catchments to catchment pressures, not just in low flow or drought conditions.
• Strengthen relationships between delivery partners and catchment stakeholders
• Address pressures that are preventing the achievement of Water Framework Directive good ecological status of both the River Itchen and the River Test, or favourable SSSI/SAC condition on the River Itchen and favourable SSSI condition on the River Test, as set out in the relevant Favourable Condition Tables (Please refer to Appendix 2 of the Terms of Reference)
• Environmental monitoring will be an important element of successful projects to inform the understanding of catchment pressures and ecological measures needed for improvement. The baseline monitoring will also be an important metric for post implementation monitoring.

Suitable Projects for Funding

Suitable projects could include (but are not limited to):

• daylighting of river reaches
• tree/vegetation planting to increase shade cover of a river reach
• restoring natural river process such as narrowing of river channels, installing berms or deflectors or realigning where reaches have been modified
• improving fish or eel passage by removing barriers to migration
• improving river flow dynamics with the removal of in-river structures that are causing backwater impacts and suboptimal river habitat. 

It is also recognised that the land management adjacent to these river channels may affect the quality of the in-river habitats and, as such, will be considered.

Priorities for Funding

Priority will be given to those projects which best address the objectives of the Test and Itchen Catchment Partnership Ecological Resilience Programme.

Projects that can demonstrate secured match funding and sustainable outcomes following the completion of the project are more likely to be successful.