UKBAP_BiodiversityNews-51

Biodiversity News Contents - News - Features - Local & Regional - UK BAP Updates - Publications - Events

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Issue 51 Autumn Edition

In this issue

2 Contents - News - Features - Local & Regional - UK BAP Updates - Publications - Events

Autumn

Please note that the views expressed in Biodiversity News are the views of the contributors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the UK Biodiversity

Partnership or the organisations they represent.

Defra Fight Against Larch Disease Continues 4

Continued Funding for Wildlife and Farming Scheme 6

Winners of Young Darwin Prize Announced 7

Parasite Threatens many of Britains best-loved Birds 13

Winners of UNESCO Biodiversity Competition Announced 15

Future Landscapes for Biodiversity and People 16

CEMEX UK and the RSPB launch National Bio-diversity Strategy 14

Recent Defra Updates 9

ARKive and the UK Overseas Territories 17

Scottish IYB Orchard Event 38

Outer Hebrides Bioblitz 39

Trinity Broards Restoration 41

Dorset Greenwood Tree Project 44

Biodiversity Based Engineering in Wakefield 49

How research is helping the Irish Hare 55

Meddon Local Nature Reserve 57

Angus Cetacean Awareness Project 58

Passing on the Secrets of Cumbrias Hay Mead-ows

60

Homes for Amphibians Project 61

The Restoration Vision for Woods Mill Stream 56

The Cairngorms Rare Plants Project 34

South Leeds Water Vole Project 36

Wildlife Where You Live 43

Every Pond Counts on the Isle of Wight 46

The Lakes by Yoo 52

A Living Wales 18

10 million windfall for 6 UK Parks 19

From Paraguay to the New Forest 22

An Unusual Bee Orchid 24

Green Gym gets physical with Biodiversity 25

A Model to Predict Wildlife Site Sensitivity 27

CIWEMs Living Wetlands Award 29

MPA Makes Positive Contribution to IYB 31

BTCV Green Heroes Award 33

Regulation for a Sustainable Water Industry 69

Celebrate a Green Christmas at Sedum House 68

The Great Trees of Dorset 63

New Research Note takes the guesswork out of Bog Restoration

64

A Sustainable Water Industry 66

Help for Owners and Managers of Native Broad- 67

Editorial News

UKBAP Update Local & Regional

Publications

Features

Events

Editorial


Autumn

Welcome to Issue 51 of Biodiversity News! I would like to introduce myself as the proud new editor of a newsletter that now champions the cause of bio-diversity to over 1000 subscribers we are always looking for more so if you know anyone else who might be interested let us know!

I must also take this opportunity to thank my predecessor, Evaleen Brinton, who I think did a wonderful job with Biodiversity News and whose helpful advice has been invaluable to stream-lining my takeover of this role. I hope that you will find this issue just as interesting and user-friendly as hers; any feedback is, as al-ways, welcomed.

I am delighted to have joined the Biodiversity Programme at such an exciting time, change is at hand with a new Natural Environment White Paper and Biodiversity Strategy on the horizon for more information read our Defra update. It is fantastic to see so many inspired and motivated conservationists in the International Year of Biodiversity and we have been inundated with examples of ambitious new projects. From national initiatives such as the Lottery funded Parks for People programme to local biodiversity heroes as celebrated by the BTCV Green Heroes Award.

We also have a UKBAP update thanks to Vicky Morgan, Emma Durham and Cherry-Ann Vickery as well as lots of interesting publications. With only a few pages in our events secion it would be nice to see some more next time, so dont hesitate to get in touch if youve got anything planned!

Many thanks to all those who sent in articles, I really enjoyed reading them and regret that we could not pub-lish them all. Please know that if your article has not been included it has been put on top priority for our next issue.

Keep the articles coming and enjoy Biodiversity News!

Sophie Rogers

UK Biodiversity Policy Unit, Defra, Zone 1/07, Temple Quay House, 2 The Square, Temple Quay, Bristol GS1 6EB, [email protected]

Click on the boxes to see previous issues this past year

48 - winter 49 - spring 50 summer

News


Autumn

Defra Fight Against Larch Disease Continues Since its discovery in a garden centre in 2002, the fungus-like pathogen Phytophthora ramorum has developed into a real threat to some of Britains forests. It is a threat that the Forestry Commission, Defra and the Food & Envi-ronment Research Agency (Fera) are determined to tackle.

The disease spreads via spores produced on infected plants. Until recently in Britain P. ramorum had mostly been found infecting ornamental and heathland plants such as rhododendron and bilberry, but in 2009 the pathogen was found infecting Japanese larch trees. Spores are produced on larch at a much faster rate than on rhododendron and are spread much further, possibly tens of kilometres, making the disease much harder to contain. Recent evidence from California and Oregon indicates that spores can be spread in mists and air cur-rents in addition to footwear, dog paws etc.

Most of the infected trees have been identified in the South West of England and in South Wales, with outbreaks also confirmed in Ireland and Northern Ireland. Affected areas include Plym Woods and Canonteign Woods in South West England, and the Afan Valley and the Vale of Glamorgan in Wales. No trees have been found with ramorum disease in Scotland, but as this edition went to press the Forestry Com-mission was investigating areas of dying larch there. The For-estry Commission has used aerial surveys to estimate the number of affected trees to be in the thousands, and is very concerned because the disease kills many of the trees it in-fects. A danger to trees is also a danger to our landscape, economy, environment, culture, heritage and well-being, so the disease is being treated very seriously.

Symptoms on trees include bleeding cankers; these are le-sions on the trunk that produce black exudates, which dry to a crust. These lesions extend on the trunk of the tree, eventu-ally killing it. Ramorum disease can also be visible on Japa-nese larch in the form of wilted shoots and foliage, often dis-playing blackened needles which shed prematurely. Symp-toms on foliar hosts such as rhododendron include leaf-blackening and die-back.

The Forestry Commission has taken a risk-based approach to controlling the disease: in addition to removing and destroying infected shrubs from woodland areas, it is also removing potential foliar hosts, such as rhodo-dendron, from high-risk sites.

Bleeding Lesions Forestry Commission

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The UK government has provided a 25 million fund, co-ordinated by Fera, for the management of Phytophthora, which is helping to fund the extensive research that the Forestry Commission, Defra and Fera are investing into the larch infection. They are concentrating on the larch because the disease does not sporulate in most other tree spe-cies, and therefore cannot spread from them. A research project will also be launched in Spring 2011 to investigate whether migratory birds might also spread the disease. Long-term research options might be to look for biological or chemical treatments, but these would have to be approved by the Chemicals Regulation Directorate before they can be used.

At the moment and based on scientific advice, the Forestry Commission requires infected larches to be felled. Timber can still be harvested if appropriate biosecurity measures are taken, and logs can be taken under a licence to authorised processing facilities to be processed into wood products or bio-fuel so that their value is not entirely lost, going some way to-wards minimising the economic implications. However, in-fected larches yet to reach economic maturity also have to be felled and destroyed, preferably in winter before new needles develop.

Other control measures include advising forest managers not to plant larches on previously infected sites and possibly im-posing further import controls. Defras Plant Health Division has overall policy and legislative responsibility for P. ramorum relating to plants and their products.

Unfortunately tree pests and diseases are on the increase in general, largely due to growth in international trade. Climate change is also thought to be a contributing factor. However, the public can help to slow the trend by following simple bio-security measures. Forest visitors are being advised by local signage to help prevent spreading the disease by, for example, keeping to marked paths, keeping dogs on leads and thoroughly washing boots after visiting an infected site and before entering other susceptible areas. Mountain bikers are also being asked to follow biosecurity measures such as washing their bikes and kit before leaving the forest. Other recent initiatives include workshops for forest con-tractors on how to fight the disease and disinfect equipment properly. The Forestry Commission has been delighted by attendance levels, and this dedication needs to be maintained if we are to protect our landscape for future generations.

More information about P. ramorum in trees, woods and forests is available at www.forestry.gov.uk/pramorum

P. ramorum Symptoms Ben Jones

News


Autumn

FWAG welcomes continued funding for vital wildlife and farming scheme

The Farming and Wildlife Advisory Group (FWAG), the leading provider of independent environmental ad-vice to farmers and landowners, has welcomed the Governments decision to ring fence the Higher Level Stew-ardship programme in the Comprehensive Spending Review.

Andy Ormiston, FWAGs Managing Director, believes the HLS scheme is a jewel in the crown of the moves to safeguard wildlife and farming friendly schemes.

With Defra sustaining overall cuts of 29% Andy Ormiston paid tribute the work of Caroline Spelman, the Sec-retary of State, and her team in recognising the important role that HLS plays in delivering support for targeted environmental management.

Andy Ormiston said: HLS is the jewel in the crown of environmentally sustainable farming across Europe. It is the most important tool that we have to help and encourage farmers to look after Englands countryside - not only wildlife, but the vital natural resources of soil and water, our landscapes and historic features.

I am pleased that Caroline and her team have taken the long term view of supporting this valuable asset in what is, after all, the International Year of Biodiversity.

We are looking forward to working with farmers, other national Government offices and the slimmed down agencies to find creative ways of delivering more and greater environmental gain with fewer resources.

FWAG is awaiting further details from the Government on Stewardship, including the Entry Level Scheme, following the spending review.

For further information or if you would like a farmer case study please contact Jane Hampson on [email protected] or 02476 698702 or visit the FWAG website www.fwag.org.uk

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Autumn

Winners of First Young Darwin Prize Announced at Prestigious Event

Pupils from Middlesex, Devon and the West Midlands travelled to the Natural History Museum in London on the 12th October 2010, to receive the inaugural Young Darwin Prize for reporting on their local conservation ac-tivities. The Young Darwin Prize, organised by the Natural History Museum and supported by Defra, was launched to help young people in England celebrate their own contributions to 2010 International Year of Biodiversity. The prize challenged 714-year-olds to produce news reports on local biodiversity projects they are involved with or support. The Young Darwin Prize was open to school chil-dren and community groups in England in school years 39. Groups of up to 10 children were asked to submit a short video, no longer than two-and-a-half minutes. Charles Darwins work inspired the prize. It was not just Darwins research, but also how he com-municated his ideas, that resulted in his success and influence. The Young Darwin Prize offered an opportunity for young people to communicate their scientific understanding and enthusiasm for conservation. In the winning videos, promising young presenters demonstrate how compost heaps, ponds and log piles help to conserve wildlife, while budding reporters explain how a secondary school is using waste vegetable oil to produce bio-diesel. Winning schools received 500 to spend on a biodiversity trip for their school group. The winners and runners-up attended an award ceremony in the Attenborough Studio at the Natural History Museum, where the award-winning reports were shown. Pupils were taken on a behind-the-scenes tour of the Museum and the runners-up also received a prize of books for their school library. The winning entries can be viewed at www.youngdarwinprize.org The prize was judged by: Martin Hughes-Games, BBC TV presenter, Simon Devine, Deputy Director of Content at the Central Office of Information, Dr Honor Gay, Head of Learning at the Natural History Museum, Dr Mark Spencer, Botany Curator at the Natural History Museum and Dr David Ng, a science literacy academic and Head of Innovation at the Michael Smith Laboratory, University of British Columbia.

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The entries were split into two categories: Key Stage 2 and Key Stage 3 with winners and runners-up in each category. The winners Key Stage 2: Year 3 at Hampton Hill School, Mid-dlesex: Biodiversity at Hampton Hill Hampton Hill Eco Warriors is a fast-paced, entertaining film explaining what biodiversity is, why it is impor-tant and what the pupils are doing in their school grounds to protect it. The school keeps chickens, adding the ma-nure to its compost heap, which is bro-ken down by worms. There is also a pond and log pile to encourage a vari-ety of invertebrates. Judge Simon De-vine commented, An excellent film, well constructed, informative and en-tertaining. The standout film of the competition. Key Stage 3 Year 8 at Axe Valley School, Devon: A Green Enterprise Pupils from Axe Valley Community College in Axminster set up a business in their school to convert waste vegetable oil into bio-fuel. In their informative documentary, A Green Enterprise, they demonstrate the chemical process that occurs when heating waste oil and adding a catalyst to create bio-fuel. Their clear explanation prompted judge David Ng to comment, A brilliant job explaining the background on bio-diesel production. Ex-cellent. Dr Honor Gay said, A really impressive project. I never really understood how bio-fuel worked before.

The runners-up Key Stage 2 Year 6 at Bishops Itchington School, Warwickshire: The Yellow Land The Yellow Land, runner-up in the younger age group, is a film about a community project to turn part of an old limestone quarry into a nature reserve. The film, made by the Year 6 nature club pupils, explores how they are encouraging wildlife in the area, by removing invasive scrub and putting bird boxes in the trees.

Key Stage 3: Finham Park School, Coventry: Fighting for the Freedom of the Ford Finham Park School produced a creative drama about a fictitious proposal to build a road through a real wildlife-rich ford Canley Ford near Coventry. In Fighting for the Freedom of the Ford, a pressure group of toy badgers, frogs and rabbits successfully argue their case to fight off the human intervention.

All the winners and runners up except the Axe Valley School, Devon who couldnt attend the awards presentation 2010 Natural History Museum,

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Autumn

Recent Defra Updates Grassroots Insights: An Invitation to Shape the Nature of England.

Natural Environment White Paper In July 2010, defra launched a Discussion Document Shaping the Nature of England with the aim of encouraging debate about how best we can protect and enhance our natural environment and the valuable services we de-rive from it. This was a call for big ideas and a wide range of views. At the time of writing, weve already re-ceived around 300 formal responses to this consultation (which closed on 30 October 2010). In addition, weve had over 5000 responses to a short on-line survey asking the public for their views about which parts of the natural environment matter most to them and how we can best protect and enhance those places. This is a tre-mendous response and we are grateful for all the ideas and contributions we have received. Now, we turn to the task of analysing all the information and suggestions weve received so that we can publish an ambitious White Paper in Spring 2011.

There are many people who do not normally have the chance to influence Governments thinking on the envi-ronment yet care passionately about this subject. We want to create opportunities for those people to tell us what they think our priorities should be. To do this we are inviting grass roots organisations to support their memberships to have their say. Defra has recently published some facilitation documents to enable such groups and organisations to hold a discussion with their members and to feedback their ideas. Were asking grassroots members to think about the places that are important to them and their experiences. But, most importantly, we want to know their ideas and innovative solutions which will really make a difference. The deadline for letting us have a response to any grassroots insights is 31 December 2010. We look forward to hearing from you!

Matthew Sabourin

Natural Environment White Paper Team, defra

[email protected]

Making Space for Nature A review of Englands wildlife sites

An independent review of Englands wildlife sites and the connections between them was published on the 24th September, with recommendations to help achieve a healthy natural environment that will allow our plants and animals to thrive.

Led by Professor Sir John Lawton, the review was set up to look at our wildlife sites and whether they are capa-ble of responding and adapting to the growing challenges of climate change and other demands on our land.

Welcoming the report, Environment Secretary Caroline Spelman said:

I am extremely grateful to Professor Sir John Lawton and the other panel members for their hard work in car-rying out this valuable review. Sir John Lawton is right to challenge us over what it takes to address the loss of biodiversity but he is also clear this cannot be done by Government alone. Everyone from farmers, wildlife groups, landowners and individuals can play a role in helping to create, manage and improve these areas, so if ever there was a time for the Big Society to protect our natural environment, this is it.

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We must work together to find innovative ways to protect and enhance our wildlife habitats particularly as we respond to the growing threat of climate change. I will be calling for international action in Nagoya next month as we look to set new targets to tackle the decline in our natural environment, and we will follow this through with the first Natural Environment White Paper for 20 years in the UK.

Launching the report, Professor Sir John Lawton said:

There is compelling evidence that Englands collection of wildlife sites are generally too small and too iso-lated, leading to declines in many of Englands characteristic species. With climate change, the situation is likely to get worse. This is bad news for wildlife but also bad news for us, because the damage to nature also means our natural environment is less able to provide the many services upon which we depend. We need more space for nature. Our 24 recommendations in this report call for action which will benefit wildlife and people. They provide a repair manual to help re-build nature.

The report makes the following key points for establishing a strong and connected natural environment:

That we better protect and manage our designated wildlife sites; That we establish new Ecological Restoration Zones; That we better protect our non-designated wildlife sites; That Societys need to maintain water-quality, manage inland flooding, deal with coastal erosion and

enhance carbon storage, if thought about creatively, could help deliver a more effective ecological net-work.

We will not achieve a step-change in nature conservation in England without society accepting it to be neces-sary, desirable and achievable.

The report makes many recommendations and the Government response will be included in the Natural Envi-ronment White Paper to be published next year. Read the final report at the link below:

http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/biodiversity/documents/201009space-for-nature.pdf

Convention on Biological Diversity: Nagoya 2010 The 10th Conference of the Parties to the CBD took place from 18 to 29 October 2010, in Nagoya, Japan, with the High Level Segment taking place.

Over 7,000 delegates representing parties and other governments, UN agencies, intergovernmental, non-governmental, indigenous and local community (ILC) representatives, academia and industry attended COP10.

Defra Secretary of State, Caroline Spelman, led the UK delegation, and she played a high-profile and influen-tial role in securing the successful outcome.

Her announcement of 100 million funding for biodiversity-related forestry projects (one of the few firm fi-nancial pledges at Nagoya) was met with great approval, and she was one of six Ministers (with Brazil, India, Malawi, EU Commission and Sweden) invited by the Japanese Presidency to help "facilitate" agreement on key elements of the package in the closing stages of the conference, and remained involved until the final gavel fell.

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After two weeks of intense, late-night negotiations, the 10th Conference of the Parties to the UN Convention on Biodiversity (CBD) in Nagoya ended with all three of the UK's objectives achieved:

Agreement on a new Strategic Plan for global biodiversity conservation to 2020 and beyond. This comprises an ambitious, realistic and deliverable international mission (the 'Aichi Target') underpinned by 20 sub-targets on halting species loss and habit degradation, reducing pollution and over-exploitation, and increasing financial support to developing countries. Agreement on a new 'Nagoya Protocol' on Access and Benefit Sharing, establishing a regime under which developing countries will allow access to their genetic and natural resources in return for a share of the benefits (financial and other) for their use. The conclusion of this 18-year negotiation is a major achievement, and one that required tough negotiations right up to the end. Agreement on a resource mobilisation package to help developing countries fulfil the plan, with Parties due to report to the 11th meeting in 2012 on how finance will be identified, quantified and channelled; In addition, nearly 50 individual decisions relating to a wide range of biodiversity issues (protected areas, ma-rine, invasive species, forest biodiversity, etc) were approved in the final plenary session.

Key outcomes agreed by parties included

To at least halve and where feasible bring close to zero the rate of loss of natural habitats including forests; To establish protected areas to comprise 17 per cent of terrestrial and inland water areas and 10 per cent of marine and coastal areas; Through conservation and restoration, Governments will restore at least 15 percent of degraded areas; Parties will make special efforts to reduce the pressures faced by coral reefs. Parties also agreed to a substantial increase in the level of financial resources in support of implementation of the Convention

COP 10 also saw:

The launch of the final study on The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB) - a detailed examina-tion of the economic costs of biodiversity decline and ecosystem service loss; Endorsement of proposals to establish an IPBES (Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services), a body similar to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), to support input of science for effective policy and decision making for biodiversity and natural resources use; A decision on action to promote the positive impacts of biofuels, including through collaboration between the CBD and other organisations such as the Global Bioenergy Partnership

The 9th Meeting of the Conferences of the Parties

The 9th COP was held in May 2008 in Bonn, Germany; over 4,000 participants representing 169 State Parties, the USA (non-party), International Governmental Organisations (IGOs), Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs) and business were present. The High Level Ministerial Segment was held from 28 to 30 May and the then UK Minister for Climate Change, Biodiversity and Waste, Joan Ruddock, was in attendance.

During this period the Minister attended the ministerial negotiations on outstanding key issues as well as a side event on the UK-funded Darwin Initiative; held bilateral discussions with other Environment Ministers from other European countries as well as from further afield; met with representatives of UK stakeholders.

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Additionally, the Minister made several announcements for new additional voluntary commitments by the UK Government to the CBD, including a contribution to the preparation and production of the Third Global Biodi-versity Outlook. The Minister was also pleased to announce a contribution to the global study on The Economics of Ecosystems and Biodiversity (TEEB), the initial findings of which were presented during the High Level Seg-ment.

The COP adopted 36 decisions on over 25 issues that included establishing a process to review the 2010 biodiver-sity target and use the findings to develop a new target, or series of targets, beyond 2010 for consideration by COP 10.

The outcome on Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) represented a major success for COP9 - a roadmap, the 'Bonn Mandate' was adopted for the negotiation of an international ABS regime, ensuring that three ABS Working Groups and three expert group meetings will take place before the 2010 deadline for completion of negotiations.

The adoption of scientific criteria and guidance for marine areas in need of protection beyond national jurisdic-tion (ABNJ) was another conference success. This is an important result for marine conservation, which will be taken forward in the context of the UNGA process.

Other key outcomes included:

A decision on Biodiversity and Climate Change that secured a process for the CBD to contribute biodiversity expertise to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Bali Action Plan, including Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation (REDD) in the form of a meeting of technical experts that Defra will part fund. A decision that created an effective moratorium on Ocean Fertilisation activities which attempt to manipu-late marine ecosystems to increase the removal of carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, with an exception for controlled research studies. A decision that strengthened activities in the implementation of the Forestry Programme of Work, including strengthening forest law enforcement and governance, increasing the links between forests and climate change mitigation, and adopting a precautionary approach to the release of GM trees; the UK also signed a commitment to ending all illegal deforestation by 2020. A decision on Protected Areas which provided for the enhanced management of existing protected areas and the establishment of additional ones. A decision on resource mobilisation that adopted a strategy that aims to substantially enhance funding for inter-national and domestic biodiversity actions.

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Parasite Threatens Many of Britains Best-loved Birds Greenfinch populations in central England dropped by a third within a year of the emergence of a new disease, reports a newly published study.

Scientists from the Garden Bird Health initiative (GBHi) discovered that trichomonosis, an emerging infec-tious disease of garden birds led to dramatic declines in greenfinch populations across much of England. The findings of their study are described in a paper published in the journal PLoS ONE.

The study also revealed that chaffinch populations fell by up to 20%. Most birds died in the summer and autumn months, and outbreaks of the disease have continued to occur each year since its emergence in 2005.

Dr Rob Robinson, a Principal Ecologist at the British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) joint lead author, commented These find-ings demonstrate that virulent infectious diseases can cause sharp population declines in common wild birds in just a short period of time.

In order to determine the scale of the disease outbreak, the study used data drawn from public observation and a vol-

unteer survey. Further data were collected through post mortem examination of hundreds of birds, which were collected from gardens across the country.

Becki Lawson, a wildlife veterinarian from the Zoologi-cal Society of London and joint lead author, said This citizen science project highlights the valuable role that volun-teers can play in helping us learn more about wildlife dis-eases, even by just watching birds in their gardens for a cou-ple of hours each week.

Trichomonosis is well known in doves and pigeons but appears to have jumped the species barrier in 2005. The current effects of the disease in greenfinches and chaf-finches highlight the highly unpredictable impact of parasites able to move between different species.

James Kirkwood, Chief Executive of the Universities Federation for Animal Welfare and founder of the Garden Bird Health initiative said Health surveillance of British wildlife species is crucial for us to recognise new and emerging disease threats that not only adversely affect the welfare of individual animals, but have the poten tial to impact entire populations.

The GBHi team is now investigating possible factors underlying the emergence of this disease in garden birds and its continued impact on our garden birds.

Members of the public can assist this ongoing project by reporting cases of disease or mortality in their garden birds http://www.rspb.org.uk/advice/helpingbirds/health/sickbirds/greenfinches.asp

Rosie Rees

John Harding

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CEMEX UK and the RSPB launch national biodiversity strategy to enrich nature nationwide

16 September 2010: Building materials company CEMEX UK and the RSPB today announced the launch of a biodiversity strategy for CEMEXs operations in the UK to enrich nature. With the support of the RSPB, CEMEX has committed to challenging targets covering its operations in the UK, including the creation and maintenance of 1,000 hectares of priority habitats by 2020. This is the equivalent to approximately 100 hectares per annum and represents a major investment in protecting and promoting nature and wildlife for future generations to enjoy.

In addition to firm goals around the creation and management of priority biodiversity habitats, the strategy which is being presented to key CEMEX stakeholders at regional events across the country in the coming weeks, provides detailed targets within the following key areas:

Establishing biodiversity flagship sites Empowering employees to take biodiversity action Working in partnership for biodiversity Champion biodiversity to promote its benefits and importance

Wildlife expert and Vice President for the RSPB, Chris Packham, said: By committing to this comprehensive strategy, CEMEX will, with its employ-ees, neighbours and conservation organisations, create habitats and enrich our environment. If everyone gets stuck in and just does one thing for na-ture, then together we can make a big difference.

In 2007 CEMEX signed a Memorandum of Understanding with BirdlLife International to promote biodiversity at an international level. By partner-ing with the RSPB, which is BirdLifes partner in the UK, CEMEX UK aims to complement the international partnership and drive biodiversity locally.

President for CEMEX UK, Gonzalo Galindo, explained: As one of this countrys leading building materials companies, CEMEX UK plays a key role in creating and maintaining Britains built environment. But we recog-nise that our business has consequences. It is a key challenge for us to bal-ance these impacts with the need to build a more sustainable future. Our vision is for a successful, sustainable CEMEX that makes a positive contri-bution to people and the environment.

Climate change is posing new challenges and threats to nature. Conserving biodiversity will play a key role in our ability to adapt to these changes. This is why, during the International Year of Biodiversity, when we are all encouraged to take direct action, we are setting our biodiversity strategy with challenging targets.

The strategy is part of a partnership which includes the appointment of an RSPB advisor dedicated to providing biodiversity focused restoration advice for CEMEXs more than 80 UK quarries, as well as increasing awareness of biodiversity awareness among the companys 3,500 employees. RSPBs CEMEX Restoration Advisor, Dr Sam Tarrant, said Against the backdrop of cuts in public expenditure, initiatives like this become all the more important. Bringing together the expertise of CEMEX UK and the RSPB means we have a team which can deliver real biodiversity benefits, and that local communities will enjoy the special places created.

Linzi McDade from CEMEX

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Winners of UNESCO Biodiversity Competition Announced The winners of the International Year of Biodiversity Competition were announced in August. Alice Grey from Port Ellen Primary School on the Isle of Islay in Scotland took the top prize for primary school entries, while Shannon Church, Imogen Hale and Katie Lipscombe from St Johns School in Marlborough won the secondary school cate-gory.

The competition, organised by UNESCO Associated Schools in the UK to celebrate the 2010 International Year of Biodiversity, attracted 114 entries from across the UK. The competition was open to primary and secondary schools. Students were asked to create eye-catching awareness raising campaigns that promoted the International Year and carried the key messages about the importance of biodiversity. The competition will be featured in the next edition of the newsletter for UNESCO Associated Schools International which will be sent to schools in 180 countries

Winner: Alice Grey, Port Ellen Primary School, Isle of Islay, Scotland Runner Up: Christopher Patterson, Port Ellen Primary School, Isle of Islay, Scotland Highly Commended: Class 4LB, King's Park Primary School, Bournemouth

Alice Greys winning entry was praised by the judges for using jigsaw imagery to convey the importance of the inter-connectedness of biodi-versity, displaying a strong understanding of the concept.

Secondary Runner Up, Cianna Roncami of Eltham School

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Future Landscapes for Biodiversity and People The International Association for Landscape Ecology (UK) held its annual conference at the University of Brighton, 14-16 September. This year's focus was 'Future Landscape Ecology' with sessions on Species re-sponses to landscapes; assessing vulnerability and resilience; future scenarios; problem-solving; workshop sessions; landscape-scale adaptation and management. Landscape ecology is the study of interactions, across space and time, between the structure and function of physical, biological and cultural components of landscapes; marine, freshwater, and on land. The conference brought together scientists from the many fields in landscape ecology with policy makers, planners and prac-titioners interested in developing future landscapes that function for both biodiversity and people. For details of how to order a copy of the comprehensive proceedings, published in book format, and to dis-cover more about ialeUK visit: www.iale.org.uk In a concluding presentation, Richard Smithers, ialeUK chair, said: "In a society where people are free to exploit common resources, individual self-interest compels everyone to make ever greater use of them. Despite the Convention on Biological Diversitys target to reduce the rate of biodiversity loss by 2010, it was predictable that this tragedy of the commons would prevent its achieve-ment. The challenge for future landscape ecology is to help create a new narrative for conserving the natural environment, establishing it as the basis for all useful function". "If future landscape ecology can help provide governments with better information on ecosystem services, then common tragedy might be averted through imposing solutions. But perhaps the greater need is for fu-ture landscape ecology to encourage understanding among those who manage land, water or resources. Us-ing information to empower and motivate them to work together may be our best hope for sustaining and re-storing the natural world on which society and biodiversity depend". Provisional dates for next year's conference, which will be held at the University of Wolverhampton, are 5-8 September 2011. There will be an open call for papers and sessions will be identified as common themes emerge. ialeUK also hopes to hold one-day workshops next year on 'The need for a bigger Britain' and on Landscape genetics.

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ARKive and the UK Overseas Territories Home to over 300 globally threatened species, with hundreds of endemic species found nowhere else in the world, the UK Overseas Territories (UKOTs) have significant importance to biodiversity on the global scale.

With support from Defra and the Overseas Territories Environment Programme (OTEP), a joint programme of the Department for International Development (DFID) and the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO), this year ARKive (www.arkive.org) is focusing on profiling the rich and unique biodiversity of the UKOTs. A not-for-profit initiative of UK-based charity Wildscreen, the UKOT chapter of ARKive will help raise awareness of the unique, rich and globally significant biodiversity in the 14 UK Overseas Territories. ARKive will create over 200 species profiles for animals and plants found within the UKOTs, and make these available for non-commercial awareness-raising and educational purposes via its award-winning website, www.arkive.org.

Launching ARKives UK Overseas Territories chapter at the Big Nature Party event at Londons Natural History Museum on Thursday 7th October 2010, Envi-ronment Minister Richard Benyon said, This impor-tant project is an innovative way to increase knowl-edge and understanding of the importance of the unique wildlife in our Overseas Territories. Wildlife films and photos are vital tools in educating every-one about the battle to save the world's most endan-gered species from the brink of extinction.

Harriet Nimmo, Wildscreen Chief Executive said, These new species profiles will join ARKives rap-idly growing collection of more than 10,000 species and 60,000 films and photographs. Utilising the worlds very best wildlife films and photographs, we hope to help increase knowledge and understanding of the Territories threatened and endemic biodiver-sity, and highlight its value in terms of the ecosystem services it provides.

Half way into the project, ARKive has already published over 1,250 new images and over 130 new multi-media profiles for species found across the UKOTs. ARKives Overseas Adventures quiz has also been successfully launched. Featured within the education section of the ARKive website, the quiz is aimed at young people to increase their knowledge about the unique biodiversity of the UKOTs. To play the game visit: http://www.arkive.org/education/games#UKOSTquiz

The project was also featured in the In Pictures section of the Guardian website, highlighting some of the Terri-tories endemic and most threatened species: http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/gallery/2010/oct/07/wildlife-uk-overseas-territories

If you have any films or photographs of any of the species found within the UK Overseas Territories, ARKive would be delighted to hear from you. For further information on ARKives UK Overseas Territories project, please contact: [email protected]

ARKive species profile for the Endangered Henderson petrel

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A Living Wales Environment Minister Jane Davidson has called for radical change in Wales approach to managing and protect-ing its natural environment, in order to ensure long term environmental and economic sustainability.

This change will come with the launch of a new framework for managing the Welsh environment, countryside and seas, bringing about A Living Wales.

The Minister emphasised our depend-ence on the natural environment, refer-ring to it as a life support system providing amenities key to our quality of life and our economy.

She was frank about previous failure to meet biodiversity targets but painted a brighter picture for the future. The new framework aims to learn from past mis-takes by employing new initiatives such as a stronger evidence base and a much more integrated approach to managing our eco-systems.

A Living Wales seeks to ensure that the environment plays a part in every decision making process by increasing awareness of the service it provides. The minister hoped to inspire national co-operation by outlining the economic benefits of conservation; a stance many policy makers have recently adopted.

She said:

Recent work by the United Nations has outlined the astonishing value of biodiversity and eco-systems to the global economy. For instance the EU estimates that the loss of biodiversity is currently costing Europe around 50 billion a year and suggests that for every pound we invest in our natural environment, we can expect a return of between 10 and 100. Now, more than ever, these are figures that we just cannot afford to ignore.

After re-emphasizing the commitment of the Welsh Assembly Government to putting Sustainable Development at the heart of everything it does she concluded with a reminder of the respect and consideration the environ-ment deserves.

A Living Wales outlines a number of steps towards maintaining and enhancing natural resources. These include refreshing management and regulatory approaches, as well as reviewing the roles of delivery agencies. This new approach will hopefully also help to prepare Wales for the challenges of climate change, thereby safe-guarding a rich, biodiverse and beautiful environment.

For more information visit Welsh Assembly Government Consultations

Environment Minister Jane Davidson with Emyr Williams from Snowdonia National Park and Rhys Evans from the National Trust at Cwm Idwal.

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From London to Lanarkshire: Autumn brings 10m Lottery wind-fall for six UK parks

Today, the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) and the Big Lottery Fund (BIG) have announced confirmed funding of 10m for six parks across the UK through their joint Parks for People programme. The parks, located in London, Kent, Shropshire, Lancashire and Lanarkshire in Scotland, range from inner city pockets of green space to the heart of the countryside.

Carole Souter, Chief Executive of HLF, said on behalf of HLF and BIG: Parks are a crucial part of this countrys heritage and this money demonstrates our on-going commitment to looking after them, making sure they con-tinue to be safe and enjoyable places to spend time. Its not just the important restoration work that matters. These grants are far-reaching and provide great opportunities to protect our precious wildlife, for volunteers to learn new skills, and get local people involved with taking care of their local park.

Communities Minister Andrew Stunell said: "I am delighted to welcome the HLF and BIGs funding for the six parks. This funding supports Big Society as the initiatives will help to bring volunteers and the community to-gether for the benefit of all. We know that parks are not just green lungs for our towns and cities, but offer ven-ues for many community activities such as local education projects such as hedge-laying, gardening and dry stone walling. Involving local people can also spark further innovation and community activities.

"The parks were set up with great foresight - setting aside land to be enjoyed by the public. This continues today as the funding will see new trees planted by volunteers that will grow for many generations to see in the future. "

Chris Packham, environmentalist and broadcaster, said: Its thanks to Lottery players that these precious parks can be properly maintained and will remain at the heart of local communities. Were lucky enough in this coun-try to have an abundance of open spaces that play an important role in many peoples lives. They are home to wonderful wildlife habitats and this money ensures they will be conserved. Its great to know that our local pub-lic parks continue to be looked after.

The six parks receiving support are:

Mote Park, Maidstone, Kent - 1.8m

Mote Park, originally a country estate, was con-verted into a landscaped park at the end of the 18th Century and is now one of the largest public parks in Kent. Its name comes from the old Eng-lish word moot, meaning a place of assembly.

HLF/BIGs investment will complete improve-ments as part of a wider restoration programme including rejuvenating the currently empty 19th Century pavilion back to its former glory and providing a meeting point for visitors and staff. Volunteers will help maintain the parks exten-sive grounds and new activity programmes for local residents will be set up. Friends of Mote Park

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Telford Town Park, Shropshire - 2.1m

Established in the 1970s, Telford Town Park has provided local residents with a much-loved green space for many years. The park, containing signs of Telfords rich industrial heritage such as old pit mounds, chimneys and railway tracks, is connected to the Ironbridge Gorge World Heritage Site.

Plans for the park include conserving chimneys and pit mounds and uncovering more of the parks history relat-ing to iron and coke smelting and brick-making. Education trails will be introduced with opportunities for vol-unteers to take part in wildlife and horticultural workshops.

Whaley Bridge Memorial Park, Derbyshire - 478,000

Whaley Bridge Memorial Park was created in 1920 to commemorate the loss of 108 men in World War One. The park, on the edge of the Peak District National Park, is bordered by the River Goyt and is popular with both lo-cal residents and visitors to the area.

Plans for the park include restoring the war memorial and maintaining woodland and wildlife habitats. Volun-teers will get involved with the long-term maintenance of the park through activities such as hedge-laying, flower planting and dry-stone walling.

Telford Town Park

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Lordship Recreation Ground, Tottenham, London - 3.8m Lordship Recreation Ground sits in the heart of the London Borough of Haringey and was opened to the public in 1932. The grounds include a model traffic area which was cre-ated in the late 1938 and designed to teach children about road safety.

HLF/BIGs support will enable the extensive woodland and flower beds to be properly maintained and the model traffic area, Shell Theatre and River Moselle to be restored. Training for staff will include mentoring vol-unteers and improving their horticultural skills, involving the local community in the maintenance of their park. A new environ-ment centre will be an exemplar low-energy building constructed with natural, robust ma-terials to house a new caf and community facilities.

Mesnes Park, Wigan - 1.9m Mesnes Park began life as predominantly meadow land forming part of the Wigan Rectory Glebe Estate but by 1847 it was home to two collieries. Opened to the public in 1878, Mesnes Park was Wigans first municipal park and today sits in the heart of the town centre and attracts 2m visitors a year.

This grant will complete the restoration of this listed park enabling it to play a full role in the life of the town. The bowls pavilion and lodge building will be restored giving them a new lease of life as a permanent base for the parks friends group and volunteers. As well as creating a 'community hub' for the park, it will also pro-vide education workshops and gardening sessions which will teach skills such as flower identification and crafts such as willow weaving.

Cambuslang Park, South Lanarkshire - 551,500 (HLF funded only) Created in 1913, Cambuslang Park spans 27 acres and is home to a World War One memorial, a bandstand and the Borgie Glen, a steep tree-lined ravine which sits adjacent to wide open park land.

This HLF investment will enable the restoration of the park including renovating the arena area to allow more events to take place, a new play area and conserving the woodland areas. The introduction of a full-time Park Keeper will help develop new activities encouraging visitors to intercact with the park and the friends group will be given training in local history, wildlife and tree management enabling them to support volunteers in a number of activities ranging from guided walks to woodland conservation.

Shell TheatreLordship Park

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From Paraguay to the New Forest Natural History Museum experts explore rare habitats

The exotic country of Paraguay seems far removed from William the Conquerors New Forest a wildlife ha-ven nestled between Bournemouth and Southampton.

Yet two teams from the Natural History Museum are focussing on these remarkable landscapes to map the hugely varied species that can be found there. Supported by the New Forest National Park Authority and funded by public donations to the Museum, the first team has already started collating a New Forest inven-tory of the areas wildlife and environment. This will provide a snapshot in time of the New Forest against which changes over the next 10 years can be mapped.

The New Forest is one of the most important areas for wildlife in the UK as it is home to a wide range of spe-cies and habitats. This landscapes unique qualities are largely due to grazing by New Forest ponies who roam the ancient woodlands and heathlands as part of a traditional commoning system. Yet there are still huge gaps in our knowledge about the species that can be found here and how widespread they are.

New Forest National Park Ecologist Ian Barker said: The New Forest National Park is the most densely popu-lated National Park in the UK and has over 13 million visitors each year.

Despite these pressures, thanks to good management by a wide range of organisations, the New Forest con-tinues to be a magnificent landscape with an abundance of really special wildlife.

Over half the national park is designated as being internationally or nationally important for nature conserva-tion a higher density than any other national park in England.

The team is studying some of the less popular aspects of the Forest ecology insects, lichen and soils which are the building blocks of biodiversity but are often overlooked because people are generally more interested in the bigger species such as birds.

Left to right: New Forest National Park Authority Ecologist Ian Barker Paul Eggleton, Head of the Natural History Museums Soil Bio-diversity Group and Museum re-searcher Dr Dan Carpenter collect samples in Whitley Wood, Lynd-hurst.

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It is an exciting opportunity to obtain baseline data in a scientific way and the fact that it will be repeated and the information will be captured over five and 10 years is extremely useful.

It is vitally important that we work with experts such as the Natural History Museum to find out as much infor-mation as possible about the habitats and wildlife here and to establish how we can best look after it.

Paul Eggleton, insect expert and Head of the Museums Soil Biodiversity Group, said: This is one of the most important areas for biodiversity in Britain. This will allow us for the first time to get a very good handle on what is happening to nature in the New Forest.

Dr Dan Carpenter, of the Museums Soil Biodiversity Group, said 40 plots within six habitats spread across the New Forest are being used to sample li-chens, algae, insects and soil in order to document patterns of biodiversity across the forest.

He explained why the New Forest was chosen for the survey. He said: The New Forest is an ideal area to sam-ple in this way because it is one of the most important areas of pasture woodland, heathland and valley mires in Europe. It is also a UK (and often European) biodiversity hotspot for many groups such as lichens, flowering plants, fungi, bats and birds. As its in the south it is likely to be strongly affected by climate change, species in-vasion, land use change and pollution. The way it has been historically managed through commoning makes it even more interesting.

Meanwhile another group of Museum scientists is preparing to embark on a fieldtrip to Paraguay in November to conduct a biodiversity survey, also funded by public donations. The area is the largest dry forest in South America and the continents most extensive forested region after Amazonia. Very little is known of its flora and fauna.

They will be working in collaboration with Paraguayan counterparts and sharing skills and expertise both in the field and in the local Museum of Natural History.

For more information contact:

Sam Roberts, Media Relations Manager, Natural History Museum

Tel: 020 7942 5881

Email: [email protected]

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Autumn

An Unusual Bee Orchid at RSPB Weymouth Wetlands Bee Orchids (Ophrys apifera) grow in a variety of base rich habitats grassland, scrub, sand dunes, spoil heaps and roadsides. Though its usual sites are well drained, the orchids can also thrive equally well in damp habi-tats. Bee Orchids are notorious for being prolific one year on a site and either few or no plants appearing the following year. A key characteristic of the Bee Orchid is the lip, which bears a resemblance to a bee, and this is a warm rich red-brown colour with golden bands and a golden tip folded underneath. In 2008 I discovered an unusual Bee Orchid by one of the footpaths at the RSPBs Weymouth Wetlands, at Radi-pole Lake. Instead of the typical bee markings on the lip, this plant had a completely plain red-brown lip and the markings were completely absent. In 2009 a record thirty-one Bee Orchid plants were counted on the re-serve. This year also saw a second flowering of the Brown Bee, as it came to be known, on the same site but this time a second plant was found two metres away. As the markings on this Bee Orchid were so unusual I undertook some research and established that it was a variety called Ophrys apifera var atrofuscus. This variety had first been discovered in Sussex in 2001, although it may have previously occurred in Herefordshire and has also been recorded at a site in Leicestershire. The atro-fuscus plant at Radipole Lake is the first record for Dorset and it is Dorsets only known site. The Brown Bee has flowered again this year with three plants being found in the same location. One plant in particular was spectacular with eight flowers. The Brown Bee has flowered now three years in succession and we very much hope to see the plants bloom again in 2011. Naomi Bailey RSPB Weymouth Wetlands Voluntary Botanist

Ophrys apiferaBee Orchid Typical Form RSPB

Ophrys apifera var atrofuscus The Brown Bee RSPB

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Green Gym gets physical with Biodiversity Since 1959, the charity BTCV has been working towards a healthy and sustainable future by encouraging peo-ple to get involved with their hands-on approach to conservation. One of their many innovative and success-ful projects is the BTCV Green Gym; an award winning alternative to conventional gyms that helps people to exercise outdoors in the fresh air whilst improving their natural environment.

These schemes have been hugely successful with almost all participants agreeing that their overall well-being has improved. By working in teams within their community towards a mutual and rewarding goal, members have boosted their self-esteem and improved their activity levels; so you can lose weight and be a member of the BIG society at the same time! Typical Green Gym projects include transforming neglected areas into biodi-versity havens, helping communities to grow their own food, and regenerating urban areas for people and wildlife. More information can be found on the BTCV website at http://www2.btcv.org.uk/display/home

This worthwhile campaign has not gone unnoticed, and the Renfrewshire BTCV Green Gym was recently awarded almost 3000 from BIFFA, a leading sustainable waste-management company who pride themselves on environmental responsibility. The funds were provided for biodiversity improvement works in Durrock-stock Local Nature Reserve in Paisley. Renfrewshire Council has also contributed around 900 towards the pro-ject; the Council also supports a number of Biodiversity Action Plans such as improving habitat for rare species like the Lesser Whitethroat.

Renfrewshire BTCV Green Gym

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The generous funds have gone towards the following:

One end of the pond has sheer concrete wall boundaries, so coir matting pre-seeded with marginal plants have been installed to this area in order to provide a new habitat for invertebrates here. This area will be used for educational pond dipping events once the improvements take effect.

One area of the park has been zoned as an area in which to encourage wildflowers, this has been at-tempted in the past but unfortunately the grasses were too strong. This winter wildflowers will be properly established by removing the turf and topsoil before planting seeds and providing interpretation.

The creation of a clearing around a shallow pool to create a habitat suitable for amphibians and dragon-flies.

Work has already begun, with gym co-ordinator Julie Wilson and team off to a flying start:

"We had a great day at Durrockstock Local Nature Reserve. The local residents were very interested in what we were doing in the pond. Hopefully the local wildlife will benefit from all the volunteers hard work. We will be back out working over the winter so if anyone would like to help with the biodiversity improvement project at Durrockstock Park, just get in touch."

For more information on Renfrewshire Councils other biodiversity work visit

http://www.renfrewshire.gov.uk/ilwwcm/publishing.nsf/Content/PT-AB-Biodiversity



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A Model to Predict Wildlife Site Sensitivity

Regional planning might have been abolished but Bedfordshire and other areas around the UK still face intense growth pressure. Housing demand is high, as is demand for open space and natural areas. People want quality places in which to explore, recreate and commune with nature. Bedfordshires natural areas are expected to face increasing visitor pressure, and many are thought to be suffering already. Natural areas have an inherent degree of sensitivity to visitor pressure: being able to predict the degree and reasons for sensitivity could help inform habitat management and open space planning.

The effects of recreation are many and varied. They depend on the features of both the ecology of a site and of the recreation. The relatively new field of recreation ecology is the study of such effects, and volumes have been written on the impacts of various activi-ties on different habitats and species. In general, recreational impacts can consist of:

Trampling, which causes floristic changes, vege-tation loss, soil compaction and erosion

Eutrophication, which leads to localised prolif-eration of weeds and alters the soil ecology

Disturbance, which causes animal fight or flight behaviours, site abandonment, and can lead to long term reduced fecundity

Management interference, conflicts between recrea-tional use and site management (e.g., sheep worry-ing, fence cutting, use of public-friendly but suboptimal grazing stock breeds).

What was needed in Bedfordshire however, was an objective means of predicting site sensitivity. The Bedford-shire and Luton Wildlife Working Group have adapted a model created by Denyse Lajeunesse and colleagues at the Jardin botanique de Montral. The model uses data from the local record centre, the National Soil Re-sources Institute and other sources to generate vegetation, avian fauna and abiotic sensitivity scores for terres-trial wildlife sites. The scores are grouped into classes from very low to very high sensitivity.

The model includes 13 criteria. Vegetation criteria include species richness, number of BAP species supported and uniqueness of the plant community type. Avian sensitivity includes criteria such as number of BAP spe-cies, representativity of the bird community and importance of the habitat patch relative to the surrounding matrix. Abiotic criteria include drainage, soil texture and slope. Each criterion is either measured or scored on a pre-determined scale to eliminate as much subjectivity as possible.

Bakers Wood John Comont

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By highlighting different kinds of sensitivity the model should be able to help site managers mitigate the im-pacts of certain types of recreation. In areas with both high development pressure and highly sensitive sites, it should also help planning authorities make a case for new greenspace creation.

The model does have weaknesses. It currently does not address aquatic or marine habitats, and it can accom-modate only one habitat per site. Some sites will best be handled by splitting them into major habitat areas, and treating them as separate units. Data can in some cases be limited, and some sites will likely need to be bio-bashed to identify the range of species. Despite the weaknesses however, the model offers an objective, predic-tive, defensible method for assessing site sensitivity to visitor pressure.

After more than a year of work, the model is now in the final stages of testing. A few elements of the model were developed specifically for Bedfordshire, however it can be adapted to other areas of the UK. The report will be completed by Christmas, and will be available on the BedsLife website: www.bedslife.org.uk.

Pegsdon Hills NR Graham Bellamy

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CIWEMs Living Wetlands Award 2011(LWA)

CIWEMs Living Wetlands Award which recognises multi-functional projects that demonstrate the sustain-able use of wetland habitats is open for entries. The Award was co-founded in 2002/2003 with RSPB, and en-courages projects which demonstrate restoration and enhancement of the UKs natural wetland habitats through sustainable development, and promotion of recreational use.

The 2010 winner of the Award was The Itchen Navigation Heritage Trail Project, managed by the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wild-life Trust (HIWWT). The project involved repairing and enhanc-ing the Navigation-part of a chalk river system which had once been used as an 18th century barge passage. Since ceasing com-mercial use, the channel has become an important place for wild-life, notable for significant populations of the rare southern dam-selfly, as well as otter, water vole, brook lamprey and Atlantic salmon, and a range of scarce freshwater and riparian inverte-brates. However, the deterioration of the banks and lack of main-tenance over the last 150 years has caused worn- down banks to breach, putting this wildlife in jeopardy. The project sought to restore the Navigation safeguarding wildlife, history and value to local people.

The project used bioengineering techniques as a wildlife friendly way of repairing the banks of the Navigation. Furthermore, a ten-year maintenance programme was provided to landowners, focusing on management of the new wetland vegetation to ensure the longevity of the repairs and the survival of the habitat. Many volunteers have taken part in the project to-date through practical conservation and heritage tasks. Recreational facilities include a public footpath which stretches the entire length of the Navi-gation. A judge for the Award commented on the project: The Itchen Navigation Heritage Trail project is an inspiring landscape scale project involving strong partnerships to create high quality habitats for the benefit of wildlife, people and the landscape.

In order to enter this years award entrants must meet the following criteria: contribute to the delivery of priority UK Biodiversity Action Plan

(BAP) species and habitat targets for wetlands demonstrate sustainability and delivery of multiple benefits e.g.

flood alleviation, wastewater treatment, recreation, eco-tourism, water resource security

ensure no priority BAP species or habitats are harmed by the pro-ject

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In addition, it is desirable that projects: contribute to increases in numbers of breeding wading birds (e.g. redshank, snipe, lapwing) and/or other

threatened wetland species contribute to the restoration of floodplain functions include a programme for education or promotion/dissemination of the work constitute a new area of work for the entrant, or add value beyond the normal remit of the organisation Winners of the award will receive: The Mance Trophy (a specially-commissioned bronze trophy of a snipe); publicity for the winning scheme; a framed certificate and a cheque for 1500, which should be used to fund the delivery of further UK Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP) targets, publicity of the project and/or related edu-cation. The closing date for the award is 14th January 2011. Further details can be found at http://www.ciwem.org/competition-and-awards/living-wetlands.aspx or email [email protected].

Giant picture of salmon, eels and a dragonfly next to the river, created by 400 people

Photo by Rod Farley, design by Abigail

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MPA Makes Positive Contribution to 2010 Year of Biodiversity and Good Progress on Emissions and Sustainable Development

The United Nations has declared 2010 the International Year of Biodiversity and it is also a year when the Min-eral Products Association (MPA) has made clear-cut progress on this front, as well as in sustainable develop-ment in general.

Countdown 2010 and the EU Business @ Biodiversity Platform

The European Aggregates Association (UEPG), and by extension MPA which is a UEPG member, has been an active partner in Countdown 2010 since 2007. We are committed to tackling the causes of biodiversity loss and supporting the 2010 Biodiversity Target.

In June, through UEPG, we also joined the EU Business @ Biodiversity Platform - UEPG has been the first sector to join. The EU Business @ Biodiversity Platform aims to support all businesses integrating biodiversity into their core activities. It will facilitate knowledge exchange among different actors, host a resource centre, provide links to information available on biodiversity and outline existing best practice. The Platform will also liaise with those involved in other related ongoing Business and Biodiversity initiatives.

Nature After Minerals

The Nature after Minerals (NAM) project is an initiative run by RSPB and Natural England, with the support of MPA, formed in 2008/9 with the goal of assisting mineral operators and planners to restore quarries to priority Biodiversity Action Plan (BAP) habitats.

In 2009, the NAM project received an injection of cash from the Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund (ALSF) and, as a result, three full-time NAM staff have been taken on to implement the project on the ground.

In 2010, companies have benefited from the NAM teams advice; guidance; and consultation responses, which have highlighted members significant contribution to BAP habitat creation by providing inspiring examples of good practice.

Biodiversity Awards

The Natural England Biodiversity Awards scheme was also launched earlier this year, in association with MPA, which will run alongside MPAs current Restoration Awards scheme. The awards will be presented at next years MPA Showcase 2011, the premier event for the mineral products industry.

The Natural England Biodiversity Awards will recognize the mineral products industrys exceptional achieve-

ments and potential to protect and enhance the nations biodiversity. The awards reflect that few, if any, other

industries actively manage land on a scale that enables them to make a positive large-scale contribution to natu-

ral habitats.

UEPG Sustainable Development Awards

The important contribution that the mineral products industry

makes to biodiversity, as well as to the community and society in

general, was clearly demonstrated by MPA member Lafarge Ag-

gregates Ltd at the European Aggregates Associations (UEPG)

Sustainable Development Awards in May.

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Lafarge Aggregates Ltd scooped a Restoration Best Practice Special Award for the National Memorial Arbore-tum in Staffordshire. The restoration of the site on which the Arboretum now stands was completed in the mid 1990s. Over 150 groups, military and other, are represented at the Arboretum and nearly 300,000 people passed through the gates in 2008. A rich diversity of wildlife throughout a wide variety of habitats has been encouraged, including lakes, ponds, reedbeds, wetland and grassland.

Trade Association Forum Environmental Initiative Award

Improving biodiversity goes hand in hand with the principles of sustainable development and environmental protection. The efforts of MPA members to drive forward sustainabil-ity and environmental priorities were recognized in July, when MPA, in partnership with affiliate British Precast, beat stiff competition to win the top Environmental Initiative prize in the Trade Association Forum Best Practice Awards. The awards recognise and celebrate best practice and reward the achievement of trade associations from all industry sectors.

This award was won for the Sustainable Concrete Strategy, developed and implemented by key trade associations and companies within the concrete sector. The vision behind this strategy is that by 2012 the UK concrete sector will be recognized as being the leader in delivering sustainable construction. The aim is to create an honest, responsible dialogue that enables the sustainable development of the built envi-ronment.

The strategy has produced two reports. The first report, published in 2009, provided industry data across 14 performance indicators against which the concrete industry has committed to be benchmarked and to improve upon. The latest March 2010 performance report provides 2008 performance data and outlines 12 targets, plus those in develop-ment, to be achieved by 2012.

Emissions and Energy Efficiency

One year on from when the UK Cement and Lime sectors achieved their energy efficiency goals as detailed in their Climate Change Agreements for the target period 4 (2008), MPA members remain committed to further improving performance and working towards the Governments target of an 80% reduction by 2050. The UK industry is tackling climate change through reducing emissions and providing energy-saving solutions, whether through the use of new and updated plant or waste derived fuels and raw materials.

Nigel Jackson, Chief Executive MPA, said We havent yet reached the end of 2010, but our members have already achieved a lot this year in support of biodiversity, sustainability and environmental issues. MPA will continue to push high standards in these areas, as well as in key concerns such as health and safety and secur-ing and maintaining the licence to operate for the sustainable supply of essential mineral products, well be-yond 2010.

- If you would like information on joining the Mineral Products Association, contact Brian James, tel: 020 7963 8000, email: [email protected]

- For further information please contact Hilary Arrowsmith at the Mineral Products Association, tel: 020 7963 8000, email: [email protected]

Mineral Products Association

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Amphibian Trust wins BTCV Green Heroes award A reserve set up to save the Isle of Wights unique sub-species of Great Crested Newt has won a regional Com-munity Group of the Year award from BTCV.

The award recognises over 30 years of work by the volunteers of Kitbridge Enterprises Trust (KET), who have created one of the UKs largest amphibian reserves and helped people of all age groups and levels of ability to become fitter and healthier through voluntary environmental conservation. The Trusts activities include a three-year long project to map the dramatic changes in fortunes of the islands wildlife ponds from 1900 to the present day.

KET, whose Friends group are all Registered Disabled, is one of more than 2,000 community groups supported by BTCV through its Community Network. The Estonian Fund for Nature received the overall category prize sponsored by ASDA at a ceremony held on 26th November 2010 in London. Community groups, BTCV partner organisations and individual volunteers were recognised for their outstanding contributions to environmental conservation, fighting climate change, turning grey spaces green and improving skills, health and well-being.

Contact: [email protected]

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The Cairngorms Rare Plants Project: Working to Safeguard the Future of Scotlands Threatened Plants

Recent studies suggest that as many as one in five of the UKs wild plant species are at risk of extinction and the primary cause of this is habitat loss as a consequence of human activity. Yet, despite this worrying evidence, plants remain the poor relations of the conservation world, receiving little research funding and targeted conservation action in comparison to birds and mam-mals. It has often been assumed that a general ecosystem or habitat management approach will be sufficient to conserve wild plants but, while this may be the case for common species, it is becoming increasingly clear that many rare plants will re-quire specialist management to recover them from the highly isolated populations and unsuitable habitat conditions to which they have frequently become confined.

In March 2010 the Cairngorms Rare Plants Project was launched with the aim of delivering targeted management action for four of Scotlands rare plant species at sites within the Cairngorms National Park (CNP), proving that it is not all doom and gloom for some of the nations threatened plants. Twinflower (Linnaea borealis), intermediate wintergreen (Pyrola media), small cow-wheat (Melampyrum sylvaticum), and lesser butterfly orchid (Platanthera bifolia) are the focus of the three year project which has received funding and support from the Esme Fairbairn Foundation, the Cairngorms National Park Authority, Scottish Natural Heritage via the Species Action Framework, and the University of Aberdeen.

All four target species have undergone significant declines in the UK and are either UK BAP priority species and/or included in Scotlands Species Action Framework. The CNP is the UK stronghold for twinflower and intermediate wintergreen, and holds some of the largest remaining UK populations of small cow-wheat and lesser butterfly orchid, making this an ideal area to implement practical conservation action for these species. Action will be delivered through designated sites and by working with conservation organisations and pri-vate landowners.

Site visits are currently being undertaken to gather baseline information on the health and status of the plants in relation to current and historical management at key sites in the Park. Following these initial surveys, and working closely with land managers and plant conservation experts, site specific management plans will be developed containing actions to increase the viability and spread of the target species. A range of different management techniques will be utilised and these will depend upon individual site conditions and the ap-proach of different landowners to conservation.

Lesser Butterfly Orchid Andy Scobie

Local & Regional


Autumn

Favourable management will be secured and maintained at sites which currently support viable populations and hands-on targeted management will be implemented where conditions are currently unfavourable. Ac-tions will include modification to grazing practices, field-layer management (including burning and cutting), and alterations to woodland structure and canopy. Innovative techniques such as translocation will also be utilised to restore genetic diversity to impoverished populations and to establish the plants at new sites where appropriate long-term management is already in place. Monitoring will be set-up at all sites where manage-ment has been undertaken to measure success and permit future modification if required.

Records are currently being collated to create a rare plant database containing information on the location of all target species sites in the CNP. This database will help to identify key areas for conservation and will be used to inform land managers of the presence of target species sites on their land. Local wildlife recorders and residents of the Park are encouraged to get involved by reporting sightings of the target species and partici-pating in organised search days at locations throughout the CNP.

Andy Scobie (Project Officer, Cairngorms Rare Plants Project)

[email protected]

Andy in action Pete Moore

Local & Regional


Autumn

South Leeds Water Vole Project assessing water vole habitat without the water voles!

As we are all aware, water vole have experienced marked declines in most parts of the UK and Leeds is no exception to the rule. They are now largely limited to South Leeds with a few records to the East, mostly on Leeds Nature Areas (third tier wildlife sites). Even in these areas the records seem low and summer floods over the last few years have only heightened concerns for the populations, some of which are al-ready living in sub-optimal conditions.

The West Yorkshire Strategic Water Vole Assessment (a joint project with the EA and Yorkshire Wildlife Trust) highlighted two of those Leeds Nature Areas, Dolphin Beck Marsh and Rothwell Pastures as Dis-trict Key Areas for water vole and it helped bring the sites back into focus. The sites appear isolated being miles apart and with two motorways between them but they are in fact linked by one continuous watercourse. Some questions immediately sprung to mind. What if the water vole populations in South Leeds are not as iso-lated as we assumed? What if the adjoining habitats to these sites can in fact provide a corridor to the water vole or even better be a home to them? What is the habitat quality between the sites and what would be needed to bring it up to scratch?

The stream (or beck as we call it in these parts) stretches for just over 14km and it flows through private as well as Council land and even crosses Local Authority boundaries from Leeds to Wakefield and back to Leeds again. The question was who could take a look at the habitat, how and when?

Andy Higham, a student studying at Sheffield Hallam University, took up the mantle and this Spring set out to assess the habitat quality as part of a mid-term project. We quickly realised when putting together the method-ology that few if any surveyors look only at the habitat quality without the back up of an actual water vole sur-vey and that no one we spoke to could quantify their results when discussing good or poor water vole habi-tat.

The methods (or the madness?!)

In the initial enthusiastic stages we thought we would try to put together a kind of Habitat Suitability Index for water vole like the one that exists for great crested newts but we soon realised this was way beyond our re-sources and mathematical know how! Instead the 15 habitat features recorded by Strachan and Jeffries in their 1993 The Water Vole in Britain 1989 1990: Its Distribution and Changing Status were carefully assessed. It was apparent that some of the features they recorded were more important to water vole than others as were the variables within the features.

Water vole John Traill of Yorkshire Wildlife Trust

Local & Regional


Autumn

For example, bank side tree cover was considered to have a more significant effect on water vole distribution than watercourse depth and using the DAFORN scale, dominant bank side tree cover (81 100% cover) scored very poor whilst rare bank side tree cover (1 20% cover) would score a good in terms of water vole habitat quality.

By the end we had a score for each of the 15 features for each of 27 transects and we also knew which features we thought carried the most weight. Finally, the Staffordshire Wildlife Trusts 2003 Water Vole Survey scale was adopted to give a final habitat as-sessment for each transect

The results

Out of the 27 transects only 5 scored Good for overall habitat quality. None of those were bordered with another Good habi-tat stretch but they are spread across the 14km and could offer stepping stones to commuting water vole. Ten scored Fair but 12 of the 27 scored Poor or Very Poor.

Essentially the water vole populations that we know of on our Leeds Nature Areas are isolated because the adjacent habitat is sub-optimal on at least one side and rarely offers any real poten-tial beyond 500m.

What to make of it?

Taking out the motorways which are unavoidable barriers and the lack of confirmed mink presence, the main threats to the water vole in South Leeds seems to be habitat deterioration from excessive tree and shrub cover and the invasive spread of Himalayan Balsam. There are also areas of canalisation along the beck which will negatively impact on burrowing water vole.

None of these will come as a great surprise to anyone but we now have clear evidence and highlighted problem spots from which we hope to inspire land managers to get involved and raise funds to get our water-courses back on track for people, the water vole and biodiversity overall.

Wed love to have any feedback about our methods or examples of similar projects and how you have pro-gressed them. Fingers crossed we will be able to avert local water vole extinction as is so sadly predicted in many other areas.

Kerry Fieldhouse

LNA Rothwell Pastures Andy Higham

Local & Regional


Autumn

Scottish IYB Orchard

UKBAP_BiodiversityNews-51

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