20.02.07 Relocation, relocation... for Newts
A lucky colony of rare Great Crested Newts has taken a step up in the world thanks to the building of a new business centre in Milton Keynes.The nearly 100 strong colony which was found living on a patch of waste ground has now been successfully relocated to an ideal newt home in Linford Wood and is thriving.
The carefully planned relocation was an essential first step in the development of the new £8.8m Milton Keynes Business Centre on a site off Foxhunter Drive. Capital Enterprise Centres commissioned an ecological survey which discovered the newts and then developed the plan to move them to adjacent woodland.
CEC Operations Director David Clapham said that from the outset the intention was to develop an environmentally friendly Business Centre and the company was pleased to be able to give the newts a helping hand.
He said: “Milton Keynes Business Centre will feature a green heating system using a wood chip fuelled boiler to help lower further the carbon footprint of electricity use. Green travel to work will also be encouraged with bike racks and showers.
“We want to be as environmentally responsible as possible and the Great Crested Newt as a rare European species needs to be protected and conserved.”
Ecological consultants ELMAW (Ecology, Land Management and Wildlife Consultancy) were brought in to move the newts in advance of construction starting on the site. Carpet tiles were laid on the ground to provide traps, with the newts seeking moist ground under the tiles and then being easily collected.
Before work began a final extensive search of the site was made and special newt fencing was put up to prevent any newts returning from the nearby Linford Wood.
In the wood itself wildflower seeding and the development and management of rough grassland helped create an ideal habitat for the newts, with the additional advantage for them of access to a large pond.
David Clapham added: “I’m told that you could not have a better place for newts to flourish and understandably they have shown no sign of wanting to come back!”
Work on the 54,000 square feet Milton Keynes Business Centre, which will provide managed office, studio and workshop space in six buildings, is now underway and the Centre is due to be completed by the end of the year.
Click the link for more details on the Milton Keynes Business Centre or call: 0845 0780322.