She said the project would “demonstrate how nature-based solutions can work in practice, delivering benefits for biodiversity and alleviating the impacts of flooding for our communities in tandem”.
Historically the site was a functioning wetland and its restoration would follow historic lines still visible in the ground where the river once flowed, said Ms Phillips.
“The project will aim to turn back time while giving a new lease of life to this important and declining habitat,” she explained.
The project, which is at a site previously known as Hoylake Carrs, will involve reconnecting a section of the River Birket with its floodplain.
A CWT spokesperson said the newly created wetland habitat would support wetland birds including black tailed godwit and curlew which travelled inland from feeding grounds on the Dee and Mersey Estuaries.
Work on the site, funded by the Environment Agency’s natural flood management programme, is expected to take several weeks to complete.