Defra

Introduction

The Environmentally Sensitive Areas (ESA) scheme has now closed to new applicants. Defra introduced a new Environmental Stewardship Scheme on 3 March 2005 which supersedes (with enhancements) the ESA and Countryside Stewardship Schemes. These pages are in the process of being updated to reflect the latest information relating to this ESA.

The Breckland ESA extends over 94,430 hectares and includes one of the most extensive areas of sandy heath in lowland England. It straddles the county boundary of western Suffolk and Norfolk, and a very small part of Cambridgeshire. The climate of Breckland is more continental than the rest of Britain, having relatively hot summers, cold winters and low rainfall.

Description

The central plateau is characterised by intensively cropped arable land, interspersed with a fragmented network of internationally important lowland heaths which provide valuable habitats for a diversity of flora and fauna. Line and belts of Scots pines are an important landscape feature, whilst the large-scale Forestry Commission conifer plantations dominate the background.

The plateau is dissected by shallow rivers Black Bourn, Lake, Little Ouse, Thet and Wissey and the adjacent grassland is commonly used for grazing. The soils of Breckland are mainly sands and sandy loams (with considerable variation in the content of chalk, flint, stone, silt and clay), overlying chalk or a layer of boulder clay. Towards the eastern margins mixed cropping is common and open heathland and pine lines are rare. In the west, the rich, organic, black soil and the lower lying, flat landform creates fenland landscapes which are typically in arable production. Current farming in the area is predominantly large scale with many farmers committed to high value production, including field vegetables and outdoor pigs. The livestock farming tends to be concentrated in the hands of a reducing number of specialist producers and graziers, with few being able to make much use of the low productivity heathland grazing. Throughout the ESA, a long history of settlement has left a wealth of historical and archaeological features. These range from prehistoric earthworks to buildings and structures.

Significant Habitats and Species

The Breckland area contains one of the most extensive areas of lowland heath remaining in Britain today. Lowland heath is one of Europe's rarest and most threatened habitats it is for this reason that the Breckland heaths are of International Importance. The Breckland heaths are of particular interest since they include a mixture of dry dwarf shrub heath dominated by heather lichen heath and both acidic and calcareous heath grassland. On well-grazed areas characteristic rare lichens, bryophytes and plants occur including Spanish Catchfly (Silene otites), Bur Medick (Medicago minima) and Breckland Thyme (Thymus serpyllum). The national and international importance of the value of Breckland heathland has been recognised by the many designations including four National Nature Reserves and 42 Sites of Special Scientific Interest.

ESA Management Options

The management options for the different landscape types that can be entered into ESA agreements for Breckland are given in the ERDP documents section of this site, under Annex X of the England Rural Development Programme. There are four main options:

• Maintenance of the traditional management of the heathland to retain their ecological, archaelogical and landscape value. Grazing is an essential component of this management.
• Reversion of suitable land to heathland.
• Management of river grassland areas to help maintain a mosaic of wet grassland with areas of scrub, reed and sedge beds, providing suitable conditions for a wide range of species.
• Increase the environmental arable land either by uncropped wildlife strips, conservation headlands, targeted arable reversion to grassland, or winter stubble.
• There are also public access and woodland options as well as a water level supplement.

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