studland

Question 1

Studland facts

Answer 1

• Behind the beach is the UK richest 100 hectares of wildflower
• it is home to all six of the UKs reptiles
• It is a UNESCO and SSSI site
• The SMP is ‘manage retreat’ to avoid disturbing the dynamic equilibrium, repairs the existing gabions and planting of marron grass
• south of beach is losing 1 meter a year
• north side is gaining 1.5 meters a year

Question 2

Studland tourism

Answer 2

• 25,000 tourists on a peak weekend
• 4 car parks
• 1.5 million visitors a year
• 300 beach hunts when rented out bring in £890 each per year for national trust
• Largest on shore oil field employs 440 people and produces 15,000 barrels a day
• national trust café employs 54 people and sources products locally

Question 3

Pressures and solutions for studland

Answer 3

pressure: oil field has the potential to cause noise and visual pollution to locals and tourists
solution: Paint machinery brown and green to bend in with trees around it. split extraction columns in half to reduce visibility. Use of hot oil instead of water to reduce visible steam. By 2037 BP have agreed to deconstruct the plant and return the area to its natural state
pressure: fires as a result of BBQs in 2010 destroyed 10 hectares of heathland, killing reptiles
solution: The national trust has creates BBQ safe zones as well as posters on how to discard remains
pressure: congestion, 90% of visitors come by car, resulting in congestion (4 miles) and illegal parking
solution: The capacity of the car parks has been increased by 800 spaces, national trust offers alternative routes such as sandbanks ferry.
pressure: dune systems are being prevented form further establishment due to erosion
solution: The national trust has created board walks, rope fences and more marran grass to reduce erosion and encourage growth

Question 4

Stake holders in conflict studland

Answer 4

• boat owners are putting their anchors down a Studland bay and damaging the sea grass that the spiny sea houses live in (only place in UK), therefore conservationists want to protect them using fines to deter boat owners
• Horse riding in the beach can be dangerous for children and pets. To solve this riders are only permitted to ride in designated zones.
• There is a conflict between locals and 2nd home owners as the are gentrifying the area meaning locals are being forced to move out
• visitors with BBQs and the national trust are butting heads over fires as it is damaging the heathland. to prevent this the national trust has created BBQ safe zones
• nudists are only able to visit certain sections of the beach
• dog walking at different times of the year as naturist are concerned with them scaring off bird and other animals

Question 5

primary field work

Answer 5

• Vegetation surveys carried out systematically along dune transect every 10 meters for an 100 meter stretch. Quadrats used to assess proportion of different vegetation to see if dunes are progressing.
• average values of vegetation cover taken from the vegetation survey and correlated with the distance from honey pot site on a scatter diagram.
• Shape of dunes recorded systematically using a clinometer, allowing accurate kite drawings to build up dune profiles.
• litter survey carried out systematically every 30m from honeypot site
• bipolar surveys carried out to assess the quality of effectiveness of defences
• interview with Stewart Rainbird (senior beach ranger for national trust)

Question 6

secondary research

Answer 6

• status of local wildlife assessed ICUN redlist (www.icunredlist.org)
• Strategies of national trust investigated using official website (www.nationaltrust.org.uk)
• marine conservation zone status checked using (www.dorsetwildlifetrust.org.uk)
• SMP strategy assessed using (www.twobays.net)
• aerial inspection of dune system using 2014 satellite data from google

Question 7

Results and Conclusions

Answer 7

• Vegetation cover consistently high (80%) until 70m where it drops to 30% and back up at 80m. This indicated that erosion has been contained by national trust policies (rope fence)
• Litter survey showed low levels of litter. My be unreliable as it wasn’t at peak times but does show that it is well managed as 15 million tonnes of rubbish is collected in a week.
• Lyme grass found in low percentage within 20 of high water mark, suggestion dunes under stress.
• ICUN redlist show Dartford Warbler is classed as ‘near threatened’
• Satellite images corroborates vegetation survey that damage is contained on 6 foot paths
• National trust website shows the zoning policy is being used to limit conflict