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Allerthorpe |
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GemmaJF
Admin Group Joined: 25 Jan 2003 Location: Essex Status: Offline Points: 4359 |
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Sadly NE have openly admitted a 'double standard' to me where on the one hand developers are expected to jump through hoops regarding protecting reptiles and 'conservation organisations' are given a free hand. I came to the conclusion many years ago that it will be almost impossible to stop these kind of works due to entrenched attitudes and lack of education regarding the needs of reptiles. We now have the new NE reptile man on the forum, perhaps he would like to comment on why NE sanction works of this nature which we all know are harmful to reptile populations? Anyone who has followed adder ecology closely will know there is no correct time for totally clearing the habitat. These schemes are simply disastrous for reptile populations. During a development mitigation this level of destruction would not occur until after months of capture work to carefully relocate the animals. Yet the conservation organisation simply contract people to go onsite and destroy everything in their path with little or no thought of the implications for existing wildlife.
Edited by GemmaJF - 14 Mar 2012 at 7:12am |
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AGILIS
Senior Member Joined: 27 Feb 2007 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 1689 |
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I like the usual replies like we did the the work when we knew all the Adders and herps were hibernating in their bunkers 10 foot below the danger of being crushed , no mention how they will be able to emerge after the bulldozers have compacted the area,perhaps the have escape tunnels constructed by NE???hmmm.keith
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LOCAL ICYNICAL CELTIC ECO WARRIOR AND FAILED DRUID
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GemmaJF
Admin Group Joined: 25 Jan 2003 Location: Essex Status: Offline Points: 4359 |
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My favourite is they are taking 'The Holistic Approach' - it must mean they destroy the entire system without the treatment or dissection into parts of which species they are actually harming.
I think they must have a leaflet containing nonsense answers to give to irate herpers Keith!
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tim hamlett
Senior Member Joined: 17 Dec 2006 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 1062 |
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"its the end of the financial year and we have a spare £25k. if we don't spend it we'll lose it. what can we do with it. hmm..."
just a thought tim ps forgot to say...sorry chris that really sucks!
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GemmaJF
Admin Group Joined: 25 Jan 2003 Location: Essex Status: Offline Points: 4359 |
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Makes you wonder doesn't it Tim? Unfortunately there are numerous funding schemes available for this type of work including one that should now be winding up promoted by NE themselves using national lottery money.
Edited by GemmaJF - 14 Mar 2012 at 7:41pm |
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Chris d
Senior Member Joined: 26 Nov 2009 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 79 |
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Hi, Just been to Allerthorpe for a quick look tonight.The good news is that the tiny area that a good few Adders frequent (which is well hidden from the public) is still there. The bulldozers missed it, they only cleared the area directly behind it, hopefully not affecting it. I'm still stinging from the common lizard area that has been erased though. I took pictures of each area while I was there for future reference. I counted 16+ areas most the size of 2 football pitches. They have now finished the work and I would appreciate any advice on what I could do there to benefit any wildlife left. I have started recording the reptiles there from the start of the year. Now that many areas are now accessible which weren't previously it may open up new opportunities.
I have just received a reply to my letter to NE. Briefly they state that they were trying to clear the shrub from the heath areas. Due to the comments (complaints ??) that they have received regarding methods used they visited the site ( a bit late !!) and reviewed them and decided that the way forward was to clear the areas left which was the majority of the areas ( they had finished by then anyway!!) using chainsaws and similar methods whic was less destructive. They acknowledge that the methods used may have been wrong and they will seek comments from people with an interest such as myself if future work is carried out (Cop Out!!) There is more to the letter than this but I don't know that copying it in full here would breech privacy or copyright laws. Let me know if this isn't the case and I will post. If anyone would like a copy then PM me and I will send you it with pictures if you want. Tommorrow, it should be in the local newpaper which will raise awareness + I rang the local news to see if they would pick up the story ! It doesn't end here people !! Local MP will be receiving a letter soon !
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Chris d
Senior Member Joined: 26 Nov 2009 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 79 |
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Forgot to mention that the birch that they cleared with chainsaws have all been piled on top of the heather ! So much for clearing the area for the benefit of the heather !!!!!
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GemmaJF
Admin Group Joined: 25 Jan 2003 Location: Essex Status: Offline Points: 4359 |
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It is unusual for NE to carryout a site a visit they must have received some serious flak - interesting they then decided when it was too late the method may have been wrong?? As you say it is then rather too late but lucky they changed tactics before the whole lot went as at many sites.
Regarding Copyright you could write back to NE and ask for permission to publish the letter in full here, I for one would like to see it, I'm sure others would too.
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sussexecology
Senior Member Joined: 30 Sep 2010 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 411 |
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Sorry, Gemma, what i meant was: there are better ways to manage the habitat if adders are known to be present. That is managing the habitat in a more sympathetic way by using different methods eg not going in with a bulldoze and doing vast amounts of habitat all at once. Sorry was a bit tired when wrote last night as late night again so didn't come across that well. Bye for now.
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sussexecology
Senior Member Joined: 30 Sep 2010 Location: United Kingdom Status: Offline Points: 411 |
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And totally agreed with that too Gemma That is really what it comes down to at the end of the day is awareness But who will make the conservation organisations aware of the issues? I would have said it would have been NE, or maybe the county ecologist. But then we have the problem of the conservation organisation not listening to the county ecologist, or any consultant for that matter, so we are back to square one. Is my opinion that conservation organisations, inc local groups, do not want to listen to ecologists or consultants for that matter (and one local group totally dead against developments even when the impacts on wildlife have been reduced or the habitats will be enhanced). |
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