Restoration Forth is a major marine restoration programme working with communities to restore seagrass habitats and native oyster populations in the Firth of Forth. Partners include WWF, Edinburgh Shoreline, Fife Coast & Countryside Trust, Heriot Watt University, Marine Conservation Society, Project Seagrass, Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, Scottish Seabird Centre, The Ecology Centre, and The Heart of Newhaven Community. The programme has been made possible by funding from Aviva and the ScottishPower Foundation.
The project funded by SMEEF took samples from five sites in Orkney, the likely source for seagrass seeds for the Firth of Forth restoration and undertook baseline analysis to indicate healthy nutrient levels for these populations of seagrass so they could be compared to nutrient levels in potential restoration sites in the Firth of Forth to help predict whether the seagrass seeds will survive and mature, or whether the planting in those sites might fail due to nutrient loading.
They also undertook predictive modelling to map out other environmental conditions which may impact the success rates of seagrass restoration. This modelling produced heat maps showing environmental parameters (Currents, Waves, Suspended particulate matter, Depth, Slope) to help establish appropriate sites for seagrass restoration.
In 2021 SMEEF was able to provide a grant of £67,300 to support this work using resources from the Nature Restoration Fund.