Environment and Sustainability

Wildlife and Conservation

Lymington Harbour is bordered by mudflats and areas of saltmarsh which are essential to the estuary’s ecosystem. Saltmarshes are important resting and feeding sites for birds throughout the winter from late October to early March and provide a haven for young birds in summer. The saltmarsh contains rare and vulnerable plants and provides important nutrients for wildlife.

The estuary’s mud is also crammed full of tiny creatures, marine worms and snails which provide a rich food source for resident and visiting water birds. The estuary is also full of fish, and it is not unusual to see visiting seals transiting the harbour in search of supper!

Marine Protected Areas

Lymington Harbour Commission is a competent and relevant authority as set out in Regulation 6 of the Conservation of Species and Habitats Regulations 2010. This means that Lymington Harbour Commission has responsibility for the sites that are designated for nature conservation within and adjacent to its jurisdiction. Under the Environment Act 2021, Lymington Harbour Commission also has a general duty to conserve and enhance biodiversity.

The Lymington River estuary is recognised as an important area for nature conservation. There are five marine protected areas with components within Lymington Harbour Commission’s jurisdiction:

The Management Scheme for the Solent sites is referred to as the Solent Marine Sites Management Scheme (or SEMS). As a relevant authority, Lymington Harbour Commission is part of the management group and monitors activity within its jurisdiction and reports back to the group which is run by the Solent Forum. If there are any potentially damaging activities occurring within the Solent sites, they are referred to the SEMS Natural Environment Group to discuss and develop management measures if necessary.

For more information about our local Marine Protected Areas see SEMS and Natural England.

Sustainability

Port Waste Management

Whatever the activity in the harbour, it is likely to generate waste of some kind, whether it is kitchen waste, sewage, oil, chemicals, or waste associated with cargo. It is everyone’s responsibility to ensure that waste is disposed of correctly and safely so that it does not damage our land or pollute our coastal waters.

The Merchant Shipping (Port Waste Reception Facilities) Regulations requires all ports, terminals, and marinas throughout the UK to produce a plan detailing how they organise and provide port reception facilities for waste, including recycling options.

The Lymington Harbour Port Waste Management Plan is reviewed and approved by the Maritime Coastguard Agency every three years and covers the disposal of all types of prescribed waste originating from vessels normally visiting the harbour.

Climate Change Commitment and Policy

In recognition of the climate change emergency, Lymington Harbour Commissioners have committed to take action to:

Early actions have included:

For further information and to see our progress, please see the Climate Change Commitment and Policy on our policies page.

Dredging

In order to maintain the depths of navigation fairways, river moorings and pontoon berths, it is necessary to dredge much of the harbour.

Lymington Harbour Commission is committed to the sustainable management and conservation of the harbour, estuary, and local environment.

It is LHC policy to beneficially use sediment dredged from the harbour wherever practical (see Harbour Protection & Saltmarsh Restoration below) and to work with harbour users and statutory authorities to ensure that the balance between the use of the estuary and its environment is maintained.

One way in which we do this is through the production of a Lymington River Baseline Document to record the current state of knowledge of existing and historic dredging activities in the harbour. Updated every 5 years, it allows an evaluation of the relationship between maintenance dredging activities and the current condition of the protected Natura 2000 sites to be made to demonstrate a sustainable approach to dredging and the disposal of dredged sediment.

Harbour Protection and Saltmarsh Restoration

Lymington is losing its harbour because the salt marsh that has historically provided the protection to shelter the harbour is eroding. This phenomenon is not local to the marshes adjacent to the Lymington River but has been occurring along the whole North Solent coastline since the 1920s. Erosion is predominantly caused by the effects of sea level rise and natural wave action. Without intervention much of the harbour will become untenable for moorings and recreational use as it is enjoyed today.

Lymington Harbour Commission started working on a solution to protect the harbour in 2002. Following six years spent conducting consultations, option assessments and environmental studies, a preferred approach was identified to build rock breakwaters in a multi phased approach, with the timing of each phase being determined by the rate at which the salt marsh recedes.

After obtaining consents, the first phase construction of a 100m long breakwater on the western side of the channel was completed in 2010. Construction of the second phase of breakwater on the eastern side of the channel was completed in 2014.

Approximately every 5 years the Commissioners undertake a review of the most recent data for saltmarsh erosion and measure settlement of the first two phases of rock breakwater construction to inform when future phases of breakwater construction or ‘top up’ are likely to be needed. This information informs our financial planning. Funding of breakwater construction (and any loans needed) is through a harbour protection levy on users of the harbour.

While the strategy to construct rock breakwaters in phases as the marsh recedes, is the ‘default option’ to ensure the harbour remains protected, Lymington Harbour Commissioners continue to pursue low-cost sustainable options to beneficially use sediment dredged from the harbour in order to replenish saltmarsh and slow down the rate at which it is being lost. If successful, this could delay the rate at which future phases of the breakwater will be required.

Following several successful trials, since 2014 Lymington Harbour Commission has been placing up to 10,000 tonnes of sediment dredged from the harbour each year within a bay at the exposed seaward edge of the saltmarsh. The purpose was to create a sacrificial reef that will shelter the marsh behind from wind wave action and provide a source of sediment to ‘feed’ the marsh in the immediate vicinity. By August 2023 surveys showed that an area of mud of around 17,000m² had been raised by around 1.5m in height and its presence was slowing down erosion of the marsh behind.

While the technique described above has been successful at reducing erosion to the saltmarsh behind, the barges cannot get mud high enough in the tidal frame for new saltmarsh to grow. LHC worked with partners Land & Water / Earth Change, a marine contractor specialising in environmental enhancement projects, and Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust (a conservation charity) to trial a new technique to move a significant quantity of the previously placed and consolidated sediment higher up the tidal frame onto adjacent lower lying areas of decaying saltmarsh. The aim is to raise the trial area to the same level as supports the surrounding healthy high marsh to encourage new high marsh growth.

In December 2023, the Marine Management Organisation granted Lymington Harbour Commission a ten-year licence to trial new techniques and in 2024 the Environment Agency awarded Lymington Harbour grant funding from the DEFRA Water Improvement Fund to trial the new technique in August and September 2024. While the trial did not move as much sediment as was hoped due to difficult ground conditions contributing to equipment issues, and an unseasonably windy period, the technique showed considerable promise and a number of lessons were learned that will improve results for future schemes. The trial area will now be monitored until autumn 2025 and a report of the findings will be published in due course. Subsequent phases will be dependent on new grant funding awards.

Lymington Harbour Commission is also a member of the Solent Forum Beneficial Use of Dredging in the Solent (BUDS) project to identify wider opportunities for beneficial use of dredged mud within the Solent. More details on the BUDS scheme (including supporting reports) are available on the Solent Forum  website.

Water Quality

Providing a safe harbour for all users is a key priority for Lymington Harbour Commission. This commitment not only encompasses the many physical assets that sit within the harbour, but also includes the protection of marine ecosystems.

Lymington Harbour Commissioners therefore take very seriously anything that is discharged into the river that could have a detrimental impact on the health of the Lymington Harbour ecosystem and on the safe enjoyment of activities on the water. If necessary, Lymington Harbour Commission can enforce the Lymington Harbour General Directions to bring a prosecution. Clause 5.27 (Discharge of oil, garbage or other pollutants) states that:

No person is to cause the discharge into the harbour of any:

In the Solent and the Lymington River estuary, high levels of nutrients present a significant water quality issue. They enter the catchment area because of runoff from farmland and urban areas or as discharges from the sewerage system, private outfalls, faulty sewage connections or as discharge from vessels.

Actions to improve water quality

Report Pollution/Discharges

If you see any incidents of pollution or discharges, please report them through the Environment Agency’s incident hotline number 0800 807060, which is open 24/7. This will ensure the locations of incidents are recorded, problem areas can be identified, and follow up action is taken where necessary. Pollution incidents should also be reported to the Harbour Office on 01590 672014.

Minimise Inputs from Boats

As individuals we can all help to minimise any additional input when using our boats by taking the following steps:

Where possible use a closed loop washdown system ashore such as those provided by the two local marinas to undertake hull cleaning. When removing or applying anti-foul paint, best practice is to do so ashore to avoid the risk of paint contaminating the water column.

If you can’t use a shoreside facility, before using Lymington Harbour Commissioners drying grid piles or the Town Quay slipway to wash down your hull or to remove and apply anti-foul paint, please remember it is your responsibility to ensure that no pollution, solid or liquid enters the marine environment.

The following guidance will help users prevent pollution from the removal or application of anti-foul paint:

Further information on how boat users can protect the marine environment can be found at  The Green Blue.