Act as Trust’s eyes and ears to stop developers destroying nests and key feeding areas.

It is very distressing to report that over the past few months we have been made aware of a number of incidents, including two we are currently investigating, of developers carrying out vegetation clearance without sufficient survey checks for breeding birds.
Whilst vegetation clearance is often agreed as part of a planning permission, responsible developers should schedule this work to take place outside the bird nesting season (indeed this is often stated as part of planning conditions) and work which has to take place at sensitive times should only be carried out following a thorough site survey by a suitably qualified ecologist.

In the recent cases it would appear that construction workers have begun clearance work without such checks, leaving themselves and the developers at risk of prosecution and reputational damage. We will continue to raise these cases with planning departments and directly with developers but we would urge any member seeing work such as vegetation stripping of long grass swards, tree felling or hedgerow clearance during the nesting season (February to the end of August) to contact the
relevant planning authority.

Speaking about this worrying issue our Head of Conservation Janice Bradley MBE said “If you see work that looks like it could be destroying nesting habitat or even good foraging habitat in the middle of the nesting season, please contact your local planning department. Don’t assume that the work has been authorised or that adequate surveys have been carried out – in our experience this is often not the case and our recent experience suggests this issue is getting  worse. Planning Departments, Natural England and the Environment Agency don’t have the resources to properly monitor planning conditions so we are often left as a last line of defence. Anything we can do together to help prevent destruction of nests and to raise awareness of bad practice could be crucial in protecting birds and their young.

Grass cutting trial could benefit Nottinghamshire wildlife

A pilot trial is currently taking  place to reduce the frequency of grass cutting on selected rural roads in Nottinghamshire – which could benefit natural habitats and won’t compromise safety.

The locations for the trial sites at Top Road and Springs Road in Misson, near Retford and East Bridgford Road, Main Street and Newton Lane in Newton, near East Bridgford have been chosen by the County Council and Via East Midlands in collaboration with Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust and Misson and Newton parish councils.

The selected roads will also have a speed limit of 50mph or more, and the trial is underway for one growing season only, however, the grass in the vicinity of footways and at road junctions will continue to be cut at their original frequencies.  The current cutting frequency for rural roads with no footways is a single swath cut (the length can be up to 1.2m) twice a year for two years, with the full width of the verge cut every third year.

Councillor John Cottee, Committee Chairman for Communities and Place, at Nottinghamshire County Council, said: “The trial sites are being monitored through the current growing season to ensure that the reduced grass cutting frequency does not compromise safety. If safety concerns are identified, the sites will immediately revert back to the original cutting frequencies. We believe this is worth trialling for the potential environmental benefits it can bring to Nottinghamshire.”

Mark Speck, Northern Conservation Officer at Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust, said: “This pilot trial will allow broadleaved plants the opportunity to flower and, crucially, set seed.  There will be an increased amount of pollen and nectar source for insects and arguably an attractive appearance to our roadside verges. Before the advent of herbicides and fertilisers, flower filled meadows were a familiar sight in Nottinghamshire. Sadly 97% of species-rich grasslands in the county have disappeared since the 1930s.

“This means that our road verges have become a vital refuge for wildflowers. With careful management grasslands can thrive in the county once again with beautiful wildflowers and grasses supporting butterflies and a wealth of other wildlife. We fully understand that motorist and pedestrian safety will be an important consideration when undertaking the trial.”

Newton Parish Council chairman James Fisher said:  “We are pleased to be asked to take part in this trial, for this one growing season, and to see whether there are any ecological benefits for our village.”

Dr Mandy Walker, Parish Clerk at Misson said “”As long as nature can be encouraged to thrive without compromising safety, which is our parish council’s main concern, then it will be a wonderful thing to see the beautiful colours of a variety of English wildflowers among the long grasses at the roadsides.”

Any Parish Council in the county interested in participating in future trials can contact Highways contract manager Martin Carnaffin for more information martin.carnaffin@nottscc.gov.uk.

Rushcliffe Resident Free Tree Scheme 2018

Rushcliffe Borough Council have announced a free tree scheme for 2018 for residents in Rushcliffe, applications for up to 2 free trees will be accepted via their Surveymonkey form https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/DHFQSLK from June 2018. The trees will be issued from stalls in Bingham, West Bridgford or East Leake in November (dates to be arranged). Please note, the planting location for the trees must be in the Borough of Rushcliffe. All the trees are two years old and approximately 60-90cms (2 to 3 feet) high.

Trees available this year are:

Field Maple (Acer campestre) – grows  to 20m, partial shade

Wild Cherry (Prunus avium) – grows to 30m, full sun

Organisations and schools are recommended to request trees from the Woodland Trust, please visit their free trees scheme website https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/plant-trees/free-trees/. Farmers and landowners can obtain trees from https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/plant-trees/large-scale/