Since the l 930's there has been a loss of some 6. 7 million hectares of lowland semi-natural grassland in the UK. As a consequence many of the remaining grasslands of nature conservation importance have been given statutory protection. However, planning pennission can be granted for developments such as mining, and as a result transplantation may be undertaken as a mitigation measure.TI1ere has been concern and debate about transplantation, because of significant changes in botanical composition and loss of important plant species.An investigation of a number of transplant schemes in 1991 indicated that the physical conditions, particularly soil wetness, of the donor and receptor sites need to be sufficiently similar to prevent major changes. However, the investigation also indicated that pre-and post-transfer management was a key factor and could be of over-riding importance. It was concluded that traditional grazing and cutting management practices· is essential for the maintenance of the nature conservation value of transplanted grasslands.
The ability to manage grazed and cut transplanted grasslands in their traditional manner is critical for the maintenance of their nature conservation value. However, such management has generally not taken place and as a result many transplants have not been as successful as they might have been. Two principal physical constraints on the grazing and cutting of transplanted grasslands have been identified. These were, uneven surfaces, and holes or gaps between turves. Variation in turf thickness, collapse of turf edges and disintegration of turves were the most common cause of uneven surfaces. There ate a number of field practices which can be adopted to achieve an even surface to the transplanted grassland. These include close supervision, to achieve consistent turf thickness, 'back stowing' of collapsed edges, and the pressing of turves. Holes or gaps between turves result from collapse of turf edges or failure to tightly abut turves where turves ate typically 200mm or thicker. The occurrence of holes can be avoided by adopting the practice of leaving a narrow 100mm gap between the turves and back-filling with subsoil. Where the above practices have been adopted traditional grazing and cutting of transplanted grasslands has been possible.
There is currently much interest in the re-establishment of native (semi-natural) vegetation in mineral workings in the UK. It is expected that future planning consents will have conditions attached which require evidence that the proposed communities have been achieved. At present there is no standard approach. This paper describes a formal sample based method which enables assessment of plant community, species richness and species of particular interest at any point in time and their course of development. The method is illustrated by use of data collected for sown grassland on a restored opencast coal site in South Wales. Further development work is likely to be necessary and comparison with other recently recommended methods is suggested.
Planning consent was applied for in 1997 to extract coal from the Stanley Main seam beneath Skipwith Common, North Yorkshire in the United Kingdom. The 293ha Common is of national importance for its dwarf shrub ericoid heath communities, and has statutory protection under UK law as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). Current planning guidance requires the effects of the mining proposals to be rigorously examined. The distribution of the heath vegetation is largely determined by the surface topography and sub-surface clay features, these determine relative site wetness. The ground surface and clay sub-surface layer were modelled to predict the potential effect of subsidence on drainage, and hence soil wetness and heath vegetation. Up to date topographical, soil and vegetation surveys were undertaken. This data was used in conjunction with the mining company's subsidence predictions to model the effects of the mining of the previons and deeper Barnsley seam, as well as the proposed extraction of the Stanley Main seam. Overall, the model predicted there would be no adverse effect of subsidence from the mining of the Barnsley seam or cumulative effects following the extraction of the Stanley Main seam on the site features which determine relative wetness and heath distribution. The prediction for the Barnsley seam was tested using past anr1 current vegetation and soil wetness records. On a broad scale, there was no field evidence that the previous mining has resulted in a reduction in the extent of ericiod heath communities within the SSSI. On a local scale, there was some evidence for a very small effect at the one location where a potential effect was predicted. As the principal physical changes to the SSSI are induced by the previous mining of the Barnsley seam, no further effects were predicted for extracting the Stanley Main seam. The modelling approach has proved to be valuable, both technically and as a means of explaining the potential effects of mining on a nationally important nature conservation site to various interested parties, including the regulatory bodies.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.