The Tide returns after 200 years due to £4.5m Restoration Scheme

The Tide returns after 200 years due to £4.5m Restoration Scheme - Environment Agency

The Environment Agency’s Greatham Marsh Restoration Scheme in Hartlepool sees the return of the tide for the first time in over 200 years.

An aerial view of Greatham Marsh. — Greatham Marsh following the restoration works, at a regular tide. Credit: Environment Agency.

A new £4.5 million project has seen the return of the tide for the first time in over 200 years following completion of the Environment Agency’s Greatham Marsh Restoration Scheme in Hartlepool.

The Environment Agency, working in partnership with The Greatham Foundation and Northumbrian Water, has restored the original course of Greatham Beck and removed a tidal barrier, allowing the tide to return to an area won from the sea over 200 years ago.

This new section is part of the wider £30 million Tees Tidelands Programme that aims to realign flood defences, restore intertidal and river habitats, and reconnect tributaries and local communities with the estuary.

The restoration project

The project has seen the beck restored to its original course, filled in about 50 years ago. Sections of old flood bank were removed together with a tidal sluice that was no longer required. This allows coastal saltmarsh to re-establish through natural processes to provide valuable wetland habitats for wildlife.

The work will enable restoration of 21.3 hectares of coastal saltmarsh, mudflat, and high tide roosts, providing crucial habitat for internationally important species including curlews and avocets.