SNCI designation for part of Binnegar Quarry

Dorset Wildlife Trust recognizes South Heath area as a Site of Nature Conservation Interest 

AN area of heathland and associated habitats at Raymond Brown’s Binnegar Quarry, in Dorset, has been designated as a Site of Nature Conservation Interest (SNCI).

The SNCI project, which is run by Dorset Wildlife Trust, identifies valuable wildlife areas that exist in many parts of the county outside the protected Nature Reserves and Sites of Special Scientific Interest.

These pockets of undisturbed habitat, which are often found on farms and private land, form a valuable reservoir of wildlife and make an important contribution Dorset’s biodiversity.

The SNCI panel has collected data about the plants and animals surviving in the South Heath area and produced a Management Statement that will be implemented and the results monitored through regular surveys in close liaison with the Raymond Brown site team.

Dr Sharron Abbott, SNCI manager with Dorset Wildlife Trust, commented: ‘The project recognizes the efforts of Raymond Brown in restoring this area of former sand and gravel workings to a wildlife-rich mixture of habitats supporting a number of important species.

‘Its continued sympathetic management will mean that its wealth of wildlife will be available for future generations and will help towards our goal to promote heathland habitats at a landscape scale.’

Rob Westell, estates and planning director with Raymond Brown, said the company was delighted that the site had been recognized as a Site of Nature Conservation Interest.

‘Raymond Brown took an overgrown area of scrub and, working with the landowner and ecologists, transformed it to a wildlife haven of heathland interspersed with wetland features and bare scrapes,’ he commented.

‘This habitat has already been occupied by a variety of species, some of which are nationally rare, and is viewed as a model for heathland creation.’