Orford Ness
| Orford Ness | |
|---|---|
| Near Orford, Suffolk | |
Map showing the location of the site within Suffolk
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| Coordinates | 52°04′53″N 01°33′31″E / 52.08139°N 1.55861°E |
| Type | National Nature Reserve, Site of Special Scientific Interest, internationally important site for nature conservation, former military test site |
| Site information | |
| Operator | Ministry of Defence (United Kingdom), Atomic Weapons Research Establishment, National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty |
| Status | Inactive |
| Site history | |
| In use | 1913 – early 1983 |
Orford Ness is a cuspate foreland shingle spit on the Suffolk coast in Great Britain, linked to the mainland at Aldeburgh and stretching along the coast to Orford and down to North Weir Point, opposite Shingle Street. It is divided from the mainland by the River Alde, and was formed by longshore drift along the coast. The material of the spit comes from places further north, such as Dunwich. Near the middle point of its length, at the foreland point or 'Ness', lies the Orfordness Lighthouse. In the name of the lighthouse (and the radio transmitting station - see below), ‘Orfordness’ is written as one word.
Orford Ness is an internationally important site for nature conservation. It contains a significant portion of the European reserve of vegetated shingle habitat, which is internationally scarce, highly fragile and very easily damaged. Together with Havergate Island the site is a designated National Nature Reserve and forms part of: the Alde-Ore Estuary Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI); the Alde, Ore & Butley Estuaries and the Orfordness-Shingle StreetSpecial Area of Conservation (SAC); the Alde-Ore Estuary Special Protection Area (SPA); the Alde-Ore Estuary Ramsar Site site; the Suffolk Coasts and Heaths Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB); and the Suffolk Heritage Coast. It is also listed as of national importance in the Geological Conservation Review (GC), as a grade 1 site in the Nature Conservation Review. (NCR) and qualifies for the DEFRA Environmentally Sensitive Area (ESA) scheme.
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