2008 Monitoring Result Highlights:

In 2002 a large translocation of heathland and species-rich acid grassland was undertaken from Norton Canes, the site of the old M6 Motorway Service Area (MSA), to a receptor site north of Chasewater Reservoir, adjacent to the existing Chasewater Heath SSSI.  Monitoring in 2008 has shown that vegetation at the MSA Receptor site is now forming an established heathland. The vegetation is in a considerably better condition compared to its pre-translocation state; demonstrating that the difficult task of successfully translocating this habitat has been achieved.

20 ledges through culverts and 29 mammal pipes were installed underneath the M6 Toll and adjoining side roads during the construction of the scheme, providing safe crossing points for badgers, otters and other wildlife. Monitoring in 2008 found that over half of the mammal pipes, and a fifth of the ledges showed signs of use by badgers and/or otters. Hyder Head of Ecology, Warren Cresswell drew upon these results when presenting a talk on the use of underpasses, culverts and tunnels under roads by mammals at The Mammal Society’s 2008 Autumn Symposium.

300 bats boxes including four hibernation boxes were erected along the route of the M6 Toll and in adjacent land holdings during construction. Monitoring has showed that between 2005-2008 over one tenth of the bat boxes have been used for roosting by bats. The species found were common pipistrelle, soprano pipistrelle, noctule and Leisler’s bats. Probable maternity roosts (where female bats gather to bring-up their young) have been found in two boxes, one for pipistrelle species and one for noctule bats.

12 purpose-built ‘Ecology Ponds’, 15 balancing ponds and a number of other wetland features were constructed between 2001 to 2003 in order to compensate for ponds lost along the route of the M6 Toll. The 2008 monitoring surveys reported the ecological balancing ponds to be in good condition, with a number providing excellent habitat for a variety of species of plants and animals. This demonstrates that joined-up thinking can allow ecological mitigation to be incorporated into other aspects of scheme design. 

The Rannoch Trust’s Conference on Grazing Management of Upland Habitats: Implications for Nature Conservation, Biodiversity and Land Use

In April 2008 Cresswell Associates organised a conference, hosted by Lord Pearson of the Rannoch Trust, which reviewed the implications of grazing management systems on different upland habitats in the UK. The conference was well attended by researchers from various academic institutes including Environmental Change Research Centre of University College London, Macaulay Institute and Scottish Agricultural College; representatives from nature conservation organisations including Scottish National Heritage, Natural England, Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust and Grazing Animals Project; and land owners.

The conference raised some important issues, including:
• it was recognised that the majority of experiments investigating the impacts of deer and livestock on upland habitats have produced qualitative, rather than quantitative results;
• studies which manipulate the numbers of grazing animals are of relatively recent date and it may be too early to detect significant changes in the vegetation;
• the relative merits of excluding deer from areas using fencing or maintaining deer at low densities through culling to reduce their impact on habitat.

A .PDF document of the proceedings can be downloaded here

Acquisition of Cresswell Associates (Environmental Consultants) Ltd by Hyder Consulting

We are very pleased to announce that with effect from 6^th April 2006, Hyder has acquired the share capital of Cresswell Associates and we will become an operating division of Hyder Consulting Ltd.

We are very pleased to have the support of such a well-respected multi-disciplinary consultant behind us as we implement our plans for further growth.  There will be no change in our scope of operations or our local management structure.  Our head office in Stroud will remain as it is, and we continue to increase staff numbers – there will be over 60 of us this summer.  In order to take best advantage of the synergies between our two companies our staff in Cardiff will be relocating to Hyder’s office in St Mellons

ISO Accreditation

Cresswell Associates are pleased to announce that their Integrated Management System has recently (February 2006) been accredited by the UKAS-accredited Certification Body SGS to ISO 9001:2000, ISO 14001:2004 and OHSAS 18001:1999.
The auditor raised no nonconformances (major or minor) and raised positive observations relating to the quality of the internal auditing process and the skills matrix used to record and demonstrate competence.

Investors in People

Trunk Road Estate Biodiversity Action Plan Launched

Cresswell Associates recently joined the Welsh Assembly Transport Directorate at the launch of the Trunk Road Estate Biodiversity Action Plan, known as the TREBAP. The TREBAP was officially launched by Andrew Davies, the Assembly Minister for Economic Development and Transport, who described the TREBAP as "a jewel in the crown of the Assembly".

Cresswell Associates prepared the TREBAP under the direction of a Partnership comprising representatives from wildlife, transport and public organisations, and in consultation with a wide range of interested parties.

The document can be viewed at the UK BAP web-site. The TREBAP is part of a long-term strategy for the conservation of habitats and species on the trunk road and motorway network of Wales.

Dyanamo Decapods

Every Sunday evening, Cresswell Associates’ 5-a-side football team Dyanamo Decapods FC take on other teams in the Stroud area. We have a strong squad of nine players who sport an impressive Green and Black strip. It is now approximately half-way through the season, and we are in the middle of the table, after winning about half of our matches. We achieved the dizzy heights of third in the table in the New Year, following a run of three wins on the trot! We have a great team spirit and are really pleased with how we’ve played so far this year. Man-of-the-Match votes and Top Goal Scorer Awards are all being fought for. Watch this space for an end of season update!