Fylde’s coastline is now officially among the best in the country for nature, after the Fylde Saltmarsh Project won a national award at the CIRIA Biodiversity Challenge Awards 2026.

The win was announced at a ceremony on Thursday 5 November. It celebrates the work to restore the saltmarsh at Fairhaven after the new sea wall was built. The project used innovative nature-based techniques to strengthen this unique habitat, so it can help protect our coast from the sea while giving birds, plants and wildlife a richer place to live.

The project has explored installing sediment traps made from biodegradable potato starch and using plants grown in a nearby nursery. These measures are intended to repair damaged areas of saltmarsh, rather than extend the marsh into new areas.