|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
The Steel Valley Project - the potential to enhance the level of biodiversity in Stocksbridge The
potential to enhance the value of Stocksbridge's
green spaces Making
and maintaining green spaces which can act as a
support for the development of a rich and varied
biodiversity The
substantial acreage of unbuilt land within
Stocksbridge District - the green spaces, the
garden areas and woodlands as well as the
surrounding agricultural land - means that there is
an immense potential within Stocksbridge District
to enhance local levels of biodiversity.
Here
in Stocksbridge over a relatively short period, it
will be possible to reverse the loss of habitats
which has occurred. The loss has been particularly
great in this area over the past
century. Through
the way in which areas of greenspace are planted
and managed, it is possible to create a wider range
and a greater area of habitats. Selecting locally
appropriate trees, shrubs and herbs - many of them
flowering - will help to attract different ranges
of wildlife to the different parts of the district.
Such
habitats should be good for wildlife - mammals,
birds and insects - but also for people. Research
has shown that the presence of wildlife makes it
much more interesting to be in a greenspace or look
out into a garden and also can help reduce the
stresses experienced by urban dwellers. See
also the information elsewhere on the internet
about Biodiversity
in Yorkshire and Humberside This
change can only take place if the whole community
is involved in making the district a very special
urban area known for its biodiversity. To
make it happen it will require the work of
individuals in their own gardens (where they can
add areas of plants which attract wildlife -
How
to make wildlife gardens
),
and the work of groups of volunteers who can spend
the time necessary to plant, grow and look after
areas of plants in their local green spaces (where
areas of new planting can develop into richer
habitats capable of supporting an ever increasing
range of wildlife). See also How to Make a
Wildlife Garden by Chris Baines published by
Frances Lincoln Ltd for further
information. In
Stocksbridge there are some green spaces which
already support interesting habitats, notably some
of the woodlands, as well as the twelve green
spaces which have been studied in detail recently.
To
view the data from The
Stocksbridge Ecological
survey
- click the button to the right Why
the area has lost habitats over the past 100
years Survey
data on vegetation, wildlife and
ecology As
with other urban areas the manner in which the
development happened within the built-up area meant
the clearance or at least damage to almost all the
old natural features. Modern
methods of farming and the associated reduction in
the labour force have meant that many habitats have
been lost over the past century within the
agricultural land - small copses, hedges, boggy
patches, areas rich in wildflowers along field
margins and water courses. The
Stocksbridge Ecological survey
is
a detailed vegetation survey undertaken by a
Stocksbridge-based ecologist, Jim Flanagan, in
2000. His work was funded from a variety of
sources, in particular Sheffield Wildlife Trust.
The findings are available on this
website. There
is a lack of data on wildlife At
the next stage of this project we would like to
gather data on where birds, butterflies and other
insects, as well as wild animals - foxes,
squirrels, mice, etc. - can be found. As
well as general interest surveys undertaken by
members of the local community, we are also keen to
find out if there are any members of the local
community skilled in the recognition of birds and
other wildlife who would be willing to help on a
voluntary basis - so that we can make a more
systematic survey as the basis for long-term
monitoring of the impact of any changes we make to
existing habitats. |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
Text, Maps and Photographs (unless stated otherwise) © Steel Valley Partnership Stocksbridge, all rights reserved. Terms of use: Any involved in education or training may copy the contents of these web pages, with the proviso that they always make reference to the original copyright. |
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
©
The Steel Valley Project , C/O STEP Business Centre,
Wortley Road Sheffield S36 2UH |
 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
