AN AMBITIOUS £2.4m scheme to preserve a key waterway between Winchester and Southampton was launched today (July 25).

The five-year project, which will begin this autumn, will focus on repairing the riverbanks and towpaths of The Itchen Navigation canal.

The Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust (HWT) says that since cargo barges stopped using the waterway in 1869 it has fallen into disrepair, threatening the habitats of water voles, otters and damselflies.

Polly Whyte, a project officer at HWT, said: "The purpose of the project is to conserve the navigation trail for the future and to raise awareness that it's on people's doorsteps.

"It's a really good habitat for water voles and we hope to improve the environment so we can have even more of them."

Work will be focussed on several different stretches of the 10-mile waterway, at Winchester, Southampton, Eastleigh and Bishopstoke. The scheme will begin this autumn with £80,000 worth of improvements to riverbanks between Wharf Bridge and Tun Bridge in Winchester.

Speaking at the project's launch, Chris Packham, vice-president of HWT, said he had grown up exploring the river and that it had "fuelled a young geek's desire to expand his knowledge".

He added: "This scheme to me represents a fantastic example of conservation moving into the 21st century. It's really, really exciting."

The project was initiated by the Environment Agency when it concluded only emergency repair work was being carried out on the riverbanks, rather than any longer term, pre-emptive work.

But it was a £1.6m grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund in October 2007 that made the project a reality. Since then the trust has prepared for the scheme's start by commissioning a series of wildlife surveys.

Two-thirds of the project's funding came from the lottery grant, with £400,000 from the Environment Agency and £50,000 from Winchester City Council.