Environment

from Issue 10 - Volume 17 - Mendip Times

Riding Jane Paterson

East Harptree plants new woodland

EAST Harptree Environment Group has celebrated the completion of a new wildlife corridor at the village playing field.

The woodland strip has more than 400 native trees and shrubs and is designed to link with nearby hedgerows and create a protected corridor for wildlife. They have also put up owl and bat boxes.

The volunteers have now started planting in the corner of a field near the village church and are appealing for more landowners to suggest other sites,

Chairman, Chris Johnson, said: “These green corridors can create a nature recovery network and make a contribution to reversing climate change.”

Playing field trustee, Graham Harding, said: “It’s good to see all these village groups coming together to support this project and doing something so positive for the playing field, for wildlife and the village itself.”

Chris Johnson Volunteers on the village playing field

Amy Johnson and Olivia, aged 19 months Nick Roberts and Bea Alexander

The Sweet Track is safe

THESweet Track, the UK’s oldest wooden walkway on Natural England’s Shapwick Heath National Nature Reserve in the Somerset Levels, has been found to be safe from the effects of climate change.

The wooden trackway, built by the first farming communities in 3,806 BC, crossed the reed swamp, joining an island in the floodplain to the Polden Hills.

The wood has miraculously survived for almost 6,000 years because it lies within waterlogged peat, where the lack of oxygen prevents decay.

There were fears that climate change and hot, dry summers might mean the peat surrounding this prehistoric trackway will dry out and the archaeological remains will suffer decay and be lost.

In one area of the Shapwick Reserve, the Sweet Track is protected by an active pumping system that maintains a high water table.

A four-year project by the South West Heritage Trust, funded by Historic England, has found that the remains of the Sweet Track outside the pumping system are not at risk of drying out, due to a combination of good water management on the rest of the reserve and the immediate topography.

Extensive reedbed, similar to that which existed when the Sweet Track was built, maintains a high water level year-round, preventing the Sweet Track from drying out in summer.

Sweet Track uncovered

Fund bounces back to help Mendip projects

A grant supported scything at Slader's Leigh

THEMendip Hills Fund has made grants to 14 projects this year, worth £12,500, which help the environment and community across the Mendip Hills.

Grants were awarded to tree planting projects, creating new areas for wildlife, a heritage trail in Axbridge, helping Burrington Parish Council maintain the public toilets, the information centre in Cheddar Gorge that’s run by the community and improving Litton Village Hall.

Other projects included help for vulnerable people through access to the area and a community archaeology project that brings people together.

All the successful projects will be contacted soon by Somerset Community Foundation with their official confirmation.

Due to a fall in income related to the pandemic, the fund made no awards for the previous 18 months. It is a partnership between Somerset Community Foundation and the Mendip Hills AONB Partnership providing grants of up to £2,000. Applications can be made between September and November.

Jim Hardcastle, manager of the Mendip Hills AONB said: “We've had an amazing year raising money for the fund, seeing it bounce back after a difficult time due to the pandemic.

“Visitors and local businesses are delighted to contribute when they see the success of the Mendip Hills Fund on the ground. The panel who make the decisions were thrilled to see the number of children and local people who will benefit from grants to get out and about in the area.”

Wedmore litter pickers

GREENWedmore is holding a litter pick in Wedmore on Sunday, February 27th, with special guest Eleanor Thatcher from Thatchers cider going to help.

Thatchers have supplied some new litter grabbers as they are very conscious that some of their customers leave their empties on the roadside.

Organisers are hoping for a good turn-out of helpers from 10am on the day.

Environment gift to schools

Pupils from Owl class, Wedmore First School Academy

CHEDDARVale Lions Club is encouraging environmental projects in schools by donating Wild Tribe Heroes story books.

The books, written by Cornish author Ellie Jackson, are designed to help children to learn more about how to help animals, plants and sea creatures and how we can all help to take care of our world.

The set of six books includes free access to a range of interactive digital teaching resources for teachers and pupils.

The Lions have donated the first books to Wedmore First School Academy, Axbridge First School and Cheddar C of E First School.

If feedback is as good as they expect, they will consider donating sets of Wild Tribe Heroes to other local primary schools.

Planting for the jubilee and beyond

A NEW copse has been planted by volunteers in Shepton Mallet as part of the Queen’s Green Canopy to mark her platinum jubilee.

People of all ages took part in the event, representing the seven age groups of her 70-year reign.

Called the Crown Copse, the 21 trees – Juneberries (amelanchier lamarkii) which have white flowers in the spring and blue berries in the autumn – were planted in Collett Park with the support of Shepton Mallet Town Council.

Anne Maw, the Lord Lieutenant of Somerset, attended the community event – with some families giving names to the trees they had planted.

The copse was laid out by local garden designer Angela Morley, a member of the Shepton Mallet Horticultural Society which came up with the idea. Grass between the trees will be mown to create a path and, viewed from the air, it will resemble a crown.