Environment minister and Taunton Deane MP Rebecca Pow visited the Wallasea Nature Reserve this week to see first-hand the extensive efforts to help the coast and its wildlife adapt in the face of climate change.

Ms Pow was touring the Essex site ahead of the introduction of the landmark Environment Bill in the near future, which the government say will address the biggest environment priorities of our age - including restoring and enhancing nature.

RSPB’s Wallasea Island Nature Reserve, home to the Wallasea Island Wild Coast Project, was created using more than three million tonnes of earth from the tunnels and shafts created by the Crossrail scheme in London.

Spanning 900 hectares, it is Europe’s largest coastal habitat restoration project, aiming to restore marshland lost due to coastal erosion and rising sea levels, helping to reduce flood risk.

The habitats - mudflats, saltmarsh, brackish marsh and saline lagoons - provide an increasingly popular home to a wide range of birds, including waders and migratory species such as brent geese and avocets, and other wildlife. The site also locks up two tonnes of carbon per hectare per year.

Ms Pow said: "This Government is committed to tackling the climate emergency and leaving our precious environment in a better state than we inherited for future generations to enjoy.

"Our commitments to the environment are ambitious and our forthcoming Environment Bill will drive a world-leading programme of reform to address the biggest environmental priorities of our age. It was inspiring to see first-hand the remarkable success story at Wallasea."