After years of planning, planting and building, Wildlife Ways – the council’s £16.8 million environmental project which covers the length and breadth of Solihull – is nearly finished.
The project has seen millions of wildflower plants and bulbs planted across the borough plus extensive restorative and management work on brooks, grasslands and woodlands.
Cllr Andy Mackiewicz – Cabinet Member for Climate Change, Planning and Housing - and Cllr Ken Hawkins – Cabinet Member for Environment and Highways – visited Kingshurst Brook in Chelmsley Wood last week to see for themselves how the work there has encouraged local wildlife. They also found it had encouraged local residents to enjoy sunny picnic outings at the riverside.
Cllr Mackiewicz said: “The river itself has been transformed to a more natural state. Where the water’s flowing through we’ve got different depths, different ecology, different species coming in and now attracting more birds. But the biggest benefit is that local people can come here, have their picnic and enjoy a bit of wild nature in the middle of Chelmsley Wood.”
For the full video see – Cllr Mackiewicz at Kingshurst Brook
Cllr Hawkins added: “Work has been done under our stunning Wildlife Ways project which has brought so much richness and colour to our borough. Kingshurst Brook used to be canalised and wasn’t very attractive but now the work’s been done to renaturalise it and it’s going to bring new species to the brook. An absolutely wonderful place for our local residents.”
For the full video see – Cllr Hawkins at Kingshurst Brook
Wildlife Ways has given a massive boost to wildlife and made the borough more colourful and pleasant for residents. In total there have been 73 hectares of habitat enhancements – that’s about 120 football pitches! This includes three million bulbs, millions of flowers, 1,000 semi-mature trees and one kilometre of hedgerow.
To see The Wildlife Ways Story poster – click on the downloadable poster in the sidebar underneath the photo.
Wildlife Ways is part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund.
To find out more see www.wildlifeways.co.uk