Mersey Estuary
Whilst the Mersey Estuary is home to major ports, it also contains
a number of green spaces and internationally important
environmental areas.
These include the Mersey Estuary Ramsar/Special Protection Area
(SPA) site, recognised and protected for its valuable bird life,
and the UNESCO World Heritage site on the Liverpool Waterfront.
Massive investment has taken place to improve the estuary and it
is now cleaner than it has been for 100 years, with fish returning
to a river that was once renowned for its salmon.
Throughout winter the estuary supports large numbers of wildfowl
and waders that feed on the rich fauna, plants and seed and in
spring and autumn the estuary is also a valuable staging post for
migrating birds moving along the west coast of Britain.
At the southern boundary of the Mersey Estuary the Manchester
Ship Canal separates a series of pools from the main estuary and
these, together with the Hale Marsh, are important roosting sites
for wildfowl and waders at high tide.