UK Press: Newts on move to make way for jobs
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Posted by W von Papineäu on April 18, 2003 at 10:46:45:
CHESTER CHRONICLE (UK) 17 April 03 Newts on move to make way for jobs
Wildlife on the Cheshire Oaks business park will be moved to a new nature park.
The borough council said the site, where 1,378 jobs are being created, is a habitat for great crested newts, barn owls, bats and water voles.
It adds in a report: 'The development is not capable of being implemented without damage to the habitat. And while habitat features are being retained on site and new water features provided, the intention is to trap newts and relocate them to a new purpose-formed wetland and terrestrial habitat south of the A5117.'
Planning permission is being sought from Chester City Council for the wetland and nature conservation site for amphibians at Stoak Grange Farm. The 13-acre site will have eight new ponds. In 2000, the newt population on the business park was 34.
The council said: 'This is a medium sized group. The new habitat would provide mitigation for the loss of feeding habitat for bats and could be designed to provide a habitat for water voles.'
Many of the trees on the park will be retained. But the council thinks it is not practical to keep the large pond in the centre of the site, and proposes to fill it in, together with the smaller pond on the west of the site.
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