HALTON BOROUGH COUNCIL

Halton Borough Council has been a unitary authority since 1998. Co-ordination of the council’s actions on the environment, are through a Natural Assets Strategy and Biodiversity Action Plan just for the Halton area. 3 new Local Nature Reserves have recently been designated, at Murdishaw Wood and Valley, Daresbury Firs and Hale Road woodland. Also, a
new phase of Wigg Island LNR is now open to the public. This brings the total to ten.

Wild About Halton, the exciting project to promote Local Nature Reserves in Halton, has been extended to 2009, funding by Heritage Lottery Fund and WREN, the landfill tax recycling company. Part of the Wild About Halton project captures action on film! Visit the Halton Borough Council website via these links to see a movie clip of the Osprey and Burnet moth

Other Recent actions include:

• The Halton BAP document has had its 2 year review in February 2005.
  
• There has been some solid progress on a number of the targets. A number of the remaining targets are now part of the Wild About Halton project, and we have funding from the Heritage Lottery and from Wren Recycling Ltd to help achieve them.
  
• The Halton pond project
  
• Restoration of Hale Duck Decoy and its re-establishment as a nature reserve. 2005 saw a new swingbridge in place, making access easier for the growing number of guided walks. This bridge was funded by the Mersey Waterfront.
  
• The public open space at Moore village has been sown with wildflowers and is being managed under the Countryside Stewardship scheme.
  
• Continuation of biological surveying and recording, with around 3,000 biological records added each year.
  
• The Parks & Countryside Service are working with Chester Zoo on the harvest mice release programme.
  
• Updating the Nature in Halton web page, including an interactive page allowing biological records to be sent by e-mail. Check it out www.halton.gov.uk/nature/index
  
• A programme of 6 projects per year by the Halton Environment Roundtable.

Halton Environment Fund: this small-scale grant has helped to fund environmental projects involving a wide range of community groups and organisations. Of particular interest to wildlife are:

• Organisation Project Details Grant awarded
  
• Friends of Hale Park Willow Bed pond 500
  
• RECOrd Unlocking the Past 500
  
• Four Estates Hallwood Park together 500
  
• Cheshire Amphibian Group Amphibian Atlas of Cheshire 500

Contact:
Open Spaces Services Division
Picow Farm Rd Depot
Picow Farm Rd , Runcorn, Cheshire WA7 4UB
Tel 0151 511 8832