National Highways is teaming up with environmental charity
Earthwatch Europe to create a Tiny Forest at the A30 Sourton
Cross services in Devon.
The initiative, to create a miniature, fast growing
native woodland, will not only improve biodiversity at the
site but also provide an improved customer experience for all
drivers stopping off at the service area.
Funded through its designated Innovation and Research funding,
the project represents a first such partnership for National
Highways, who will be trialling a new technique to create a
layered and densely planted woodland area alongside the A30,
creating a vibrant habitat for butterflies, birds and bees.
Following the Japanese Miyawaki planting method, community
volunteers from the Okehampton area answered the call to assist
Earthwatch in building the forest in miniature over recent weeks.
Among the tree species, oak, hornbeam, birch, hawthorn, crab
apple, field maple and hazel and shrub such as broom and guelder
rose – all known to thrive in the Devon area – have been planted
on a 200-metre square plot at the services site.
A total of 375 trees were sourced by Earthwatch as part of the
Community Trees Programme, a partnership between National
Highways, The Tree Council and Greenwood Plants, which donates
trees to communities across the country.
Tiny forests store carbon in trees, mitigate flooding and heat
stress, attract wildlife and improve air quality, and the Sourton
plot will ultimately provide screening from the A30 and an
accessible green space for people to connect with nature.
Since 2020, environmental group Earthwatch has planted over 300
tiny forests across the country, and, as with other projects,
development of the Sourton woodland will be monitored.
Ben Hewlett, Senior Environmental Advisor at National Highways,
said: “Our work goes beyond operating, maintaining and improving
roads and through our designated funds, we're investing in the
environment and communities surrounding our network, as well as
the people travelling and working on it, adding real value to
society.
“It's a first for us, and we're delighted to be working with
Earthwatch on this initiative, which will see us trialling a new
technique to aid the establishment of trees and mitigate any
losses.
“Tree planting and green spaces are a key part of our
environmental commitment, we're working to plant hundreds of
thousands of trees by 2030 and as part of that initiative, the
Sourton project will bring significant benefits in terms of
biodiversity and a wildlife focus for local communities. It will
also enhance the experience for all visitors using our well-used
service area.”
Grace Gale, Project Manager at Earthwatch Europe, said: “This
project provides rich opportunities for connecting communities
with the environment and sustainability, and we're thrilled to be
working with National Highways to bring it to Sourton.
“It's vital that we give people the knowledge and skills to
protect our natural world and inspire them to take positive
action from a young age.”
National Highways manages four designated funds to deliver
benefits above and beyond building, maintaining and operating
England's strategic roads.
The aim is to make a positive difference to people's lives by
protecting the environment and enhancing the landscape around
roads, improving safety, reducing congestion, and supporting
communities and assisting innovation and research.
Elsewhere in the South West, National Highways' designated
funding has also helped to:
- restore and recreate 16.8 hectares of woodland, orchard,
grassland and heathland, and tree planting across the
mid-Cornwall landscape;
- improve water quality and biodiversity at Stover Country Park
near the A38 in Devon;
- enable grassland and wildflower initiatives along the A303
and M4 in Wiltshire, the A46 near Bath and the A35 in Dorset;
- provide a suite of wildflower and grasslands projects
alongside the strategic road network in the Cotswolds.
To find out more about the company's Designated Funds programme
go to https://nationalhighways.co.uk/our-work/designated-funds/
Further information on the Community Trees programme can be found
on the National Highways website, and to find
out more about the work of Earthwatch Europe people can log on to
www.earthwatch.org.uk
