New wetland areas could be created in Norfolk and Suffolk as part of a drive to boost nature in the two counties.
Peatlands could also be restored, more trees and hedges planted and existing woodlands and grasslands better managed to reverse a decline in biodiversity.
Norfolk and Suffolk county councils have been charged with coming up with new strategies to help nature to recover - with the government handing the authorities more than half a million pounds to develop their blueprints.
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Norfolk will get £333,000 and Suffolk £282,000 over two years to fund this work, with the money coming from a central £14m funding pot.
The councils will be expected to focus on how to improve habitats and protect the natural environment across the region.
What measures will be taken will depend upon what needs are identified and what funding is available.
But the government says it expects strategies to include actions such as wetland creation, peatlands restoration and planting of trees and hedgerows.
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Farmers and land managers will be paid to undertake environmentally beneficial activities on their land.
The councils will have to draw up habitat maps and tailor approaches according to the circumstances of each area, from the chalk streams of the Norfolk coast to the Stour estuary at the south-east of Suffolk.
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Eric Vardy, Norfolk County Council’s cabinet member for environment, said: "We’re incredibly lucky to live in a part of the country that is home to so many beautiful landscapes and unique biosystems, but that luck comes with a duty to preserve and protect these areas for future generations.
"Local Nature Recovery Strategies will form a key part of that work, alongside our commitments laid out in our environmental policy and climate strategy to give nature space to recover and grow and to encourage a thriving wildlife community."
The government expects councils to take 12 to 18 months to prepare and publish their Local Nature Recovery Strategies.
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