The Lee - or Lea - Valley forms a unique 'natural' corridor on London's doorstep - extending into Hertfordshire and Essex. It provides a vital refuge for wildlife and large areas of greenspace for people to enjoy.
Priority habitats include rivers and streams, open water, floodplain grassland, fen, and wet woodland supporting species such as water vole, otter, shoveler, gadwall, pochard, smew, water rail, cormorant, and grey heron.
However, loss and fragmentation of these habitats is under increasing threat from the changing climate, inappropriate development, pollution, and invasive species.
The Lee Valley Regional Park Authority (LVRPA) recently produced a bid for a Lee Valley NIA.
The scoping of this landscape-scale project (along with the Lower Lee pilot WFD catchment plan) will develop the framework for future Living Landscape enhancements, linked to a number of projects delivered by a range of partners.
These projects include the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, Woodberry Wetlands, Walthamstow Wetlands, LVRPA's Park Development Framework, the Lower Lee Catchment Plan, the Upper Lee Landscape Strategy, and the All London Green Grid Lee Valley Area Framework.
The Trust is a partner on many of these initiatives, and is likely to focus on species and community engagement projects.