Press Releases and Notices
| December 12, 2006. A BREEDING GROUND FOR SUCCESS |
A BREEDING GROUND FOR SUCCESS
A unique collaboration between Kingsway Business Park and Chester Zoo has enjoyed great success in helping to tackle the decline in Britain’s water voles recently highlighted by the British Waterways and the Environment Agency.
News that the mammals are now considered one of Britain’s priority endangered species with a 95% reduction in population over the past 20 years has given rise to the belief that numbers will have dwindled to the point of no return in the next 10 years.
Sections of Stanney Brook Corridor situated on the Kingsway site, which is currently being developed by the Kingsway Partnership into a £350 million, 285 acre mixed-use business park, were inhabited by this rare species of water vole (Arvicola terrestris). In order to maintain this population new habitats within the Kingsway site are being created to provide a secure home for the water voles as the development progresses.
As these new habitats take several years to mature, Chester Zoo is providing the ideal temporary home before the voles can be re-introduced to Kingsway next year. Following an initial thorough search of the site, some 31 water voles were collected from Kingsway, taken to the Zoo and entered into a planned breeding program over a two year period to provide young healthy water voles for release.
Mike Jordan, Curator of Higher Vertebrates at Chester Zoo comments: "Our results from this year have been extremely encouraging in increasing the vole population to more than 200 from an initial 31 water voles. By producing many more water voles than are required for the Kingsway site we can ensure that a broad genetic base can be delivered back to the project in 2007/8 and also carry out reintroduction of voles to other areas of the North West from where they have already disappeared."
Rob Green, Operations Director for Kingsway at the Northwest Regional Development Agency comments for the Kingsway Partnership: "The protection of habitats and local wildlife has always been a priority within the development of the Kingsway Business Park with the British Waterways latest findings proving just how important our breeding programme is. The success of the programme has meant that we are looking to populate not only Kingsway but possible further habitats within the North West helping to protect this endangered species in the longer term.”
Ends
For further information, please contact Justine McGuinn or Leona Thompson at FD Tamesis on 0161 834 3834 or email Justine@tamesis-mcr.com or leona@tamesis-mcr.com
About Kingsway
Kingsway is a £350 million, private sector investment; proposed business focused mixed use development of 170 hectare (420 acre) gross area, with a 115 hectare (285 acre) net developable area.
The site is located within the borough of Rochdale, Greater Manchester and is situated on the edge of the M62 and the A664 at Junction 21.
Kingsway is one of the largest developments of its kind in the UK with 3,071,732 sq ft of industrial and distribution space, 295,867 sq ft of office space and 196, 435 sq ft of retail and leisure space with a current allocation of 300 units for residential purposes, Kingsway has a total commercial floor space (B1/B2/B8) 3.6m sq ft.
As a key economic driver for the regeneration of Rochdale and Greater Manchester, Kingsway is one of the North West Regional Development Agency’s (NWDA) 25 strategic sites.
Kingsway is a joint venture between the Northwest Regional Development Agency and Wilson Bowden Developments in association with Rochdale Borough Council.
Chester Zoo
Chester Zoo is the leading charity zoo in the UK. It attracts more than
one million visitors a year and is home to 7,000 animals – 500
different species – of which many are endangered.
For more information on Chester Zoo visit www.chesterzoo.org
For press information contact PR and Media Manager Rachael Ashton on 01244 389460.