News & Media > Rail Services

05:02:2010

Oasis is no longer a blur

May Gurney and Network Rail have supported the extensive restoration of a former mineral works to create a natural oasis in Staffordshire.

Croxall Lakes, a former sand and gravel quarry, is being transformed into a wetland habitat by Staffordshire Wildlife Trust. The work will benefit creatures as diverse as otters, river shingle beetles, common terns and fish.

The opportunity for May Gurney to help came about as a result of works to provide scour protection around the piers of Wychnor Viaduct, a rail bridge at the confluence of the Tame and Trent rivers.

We re-profiled the River Tame to improve water flow and make the dynamics of the river more natural. The excavated material was moved to the main lake to create shallows and a foundation for reed beds to encourage more birds to nest in the reserve.

River braiding, a process only completed at two other quarries in the UK, is one of the latest schemes being undertaken to return the area to its natural state. This work involves widening the rivers Trent and Tame to create gravel islands, backwaters and channels, a process complemented by transferring earth to the lakes to develop a new reed bed.

Nick Mott, senior ecologist with Staffordshire Wildlife Trust, said: “I would like to thank Network Rail and May Gurney for your generous contribution to the restoration project at Croxhall Lakes, which is helping us to deliver this exciting scheme on schedule.”

The Wildlife Trust wants to use the reserve as a demonstration site to inspire other quarry companies and mineral planners to identify other areas where river braiding schemes could be carried out.

Click here to read the full Burton Mail news report.