MPA and BBCT renew Memorandum of Understanding

Mineral Products Association and Bumblebee Conservation Trust reaffirm commitment to work together

THE Mineral Products Association (MPA) and the Bumblebee Conservation Trust (BBCT) have reaffirmed their commitment to work together through renewing their Memorandum of Understanding, originally signed at the end of 2012.

The Memorandum of Understanding aims to ensure the good work of both organizations continues and develops, including facilitating access to quarry sites for monitoring, advising and educating quarry staff on measures that help bees, including creation of suitable habitat and training quarry staff to recognise and survey their sites for bees.

In addition, the MPA and BBCT will continue to raise the profile of each other’s organizations and their mutual objectives.

Nigel Jackson, chief executive of the MPA, said: ‘I’m delighted with our work together to date and look forward to continuing this into the future. Bees are under threat and we want to do what we can to support them and the vital role they play in maintaining ecosystems services.

‘Active and restored industry sites can provide homes for bees and, as an industry, we are keen to use our unique position as managers and restorers of land to help contribute to biodiversity enhancement. We have a long legacy of high-quality restoration and we look forward to productive collaboration with the BBCT.’

Gill Perkins, conservation manager with the BBCT, said: ‘Bumblebees are a crucial part of the UK’s ecosystem and our natural heritage, so it’s alarming to see how numbers have been declining in recent years.

‘The partnership with the MPA means we will be able to continue our work with quarries, ensuring that the UK’s bumblebees have the habitat they need in order to survive. By working with MPA members to increase the availability of habitat for bumblebees, BBCT hopes to begin a reversal in the recent fortunes of these important insects.’