Plans revealed for new wetland site near town

Works preparing the ground for the wetlands have started

Plans for a new wetland site near Stroud have been revealed.

If approved, the Fromebridge Biodiversity Project will cover an area the size of seven football pitches and provide a habitat for migrating birds and water voles.

The scheme includes a bird hide and the creation of accessible paths to encourage visitors.

It will also be the first step in reinstating the final stretch of the Stroudwater Canal between Fromebridge and Saul Junction.

It is hoped the wetlands could attract rare Bewick's swans

The proposal has come from Cotswold Canals Connected (CCC), which is a partnership between Stroud District Council and Cotswold Canals Trust.

Catherine Braun, Stroud District Council leader, said: “The council is committed to the restoration of the canal, promoting tourism and protecting and enhancing our environment, so we’re very excited to be part of this canal biodiversity project at Fromebridge”.

Reinstating wetlands

The wetland zone will be created by volunteers and Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust across 12 acres of fields.

It will involve lowering the bank of the River Frome in several places to encourage managed flooding, recreating the wetland environment which existed about 200 years ago.

It is hoped the area will be ready by the end of next year and will attract a host of plants and migratory birds, including lapwings, herons, curlews and rare Bewick's swans.

Two special ponds will be created for water voles and a second wetland site will be created south of the River Frome as part of works to reinstate the 'missing mile' of Stroudwater Canal.

When complete, a dedicated wildlife corridor will run along the length of the canal between Brimscombe Port in Stroud and Saul.

Canal towns

The overall aim of the project is to reconnect Stroudwater Canal with the national canal network.

The wetland will pave the way for the reintroduction of the final 1.25 miles (2km) section of the waterway up to the Gloucester Sharpness Canal at Saul Junction.

Much of this section of the canal already exists but was closed in the 1950s along with other parts of the local network.

Works to reopen it will include dredging, replacing three bridges and linking the canal in two places with the River Frome, which runs parallel.

When complete, CCC project director, Chris Mitford-Slade, said Stroud and Stonehouse will “once again be canal towns”.

“It’s very much part of the heritage as Stroud and Stonehouse were built up along the canal over the years as that was how goods were imported and exported during the industrial revolution,” he added.

“The restored canal will have a much different more community-based purpose rather than a business one, but it’s very much part of our heritage and one people enjoy.”

CCC is the largest canal restoration scheme in the country and will cost more than £15m.