A Government minister has visited Tollesbury to launch a national conservation project.

Elliot Morley, Flood Defence Minister, was at Tollesbury Fleet, one of three sites in East Anglia that will benefit from new guidelines which will see internationally important conservation sites around the English coast protected from the sea.

Six initial areas have been identified as requiring the most urgent work to protect their habitats for bird, plant and other wildlife. One of these is the Essex coast and its estuaries.

Under a the Government and English Nature habitat re-creation experiment at Tollesbury, 50 acres of arable farmland were flooded in 1995 in an attempt to form saltmarsh and mudflat.

Mr Morley saw that the site was now home to a large number of bird and plant species.

New funding arrangements will ensure such habitats will be either saved or re-created. Plans for the six areas will be formulated under the Coastal Habitat Management Plans (CHaMPs)

The Environment Agency and local authorities will be able to use the CHaMPs guidelines to decide with the Ministry of Agriculture Fisheries and Food and English Nature what needs to be done to protect habitats.

Mr Morley said: "The Government is committed to honour its international obligations to protect the important habitats around the coastline. To meet this commitment MAFF has modified the funding arrangements to ensure these sites are protected.

"I am delighted excellent co-ordination between Government, operating authorities and conservation bodies has achieved this result."

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