[Default] On Thu, 23 Jul 2009 17:59:48 +0100, [email protected] finished their pint and wrote::
>Seriously, although it might seem like 'giving things away to the enemy' I >suspect that talking to local nature interests earlier rather than having them >spring surprises on you later is the best way. They aren't all necessarily >hard-liners who automatically equate boating with destroying wildlife and will >instinctively fight it. But sadly some of them do seem to be. There were major problems with the Derbyshire Wildlife Trust when the restoration of the Cromford was first mooted - I think things are a lot better now. > >No doubt every square inch of >> that will be crawling (literally) with rare species that, strangely, >> seem to get everywhere ;-) > >Annoyingly it does seem to be the case that 'nationally scarce' species are to >be found in abundance wherever we want to restore a canal. Maybe the answer is >for ourselves and the nature conservationists to get together and build lots >more canals. > The "standard" objection used around here that every pool or pond was a "potential Great Crested Newt habitat", meaning that (expensive and ultimately fruitless) surveys had to be carried out, just to prove the things weren't there. I felt like putting a tank with frog spawn down somewhere and labelling it "potential Great Crested Newts"!! Brian L Dominic Web Sites: Canals: http://www.brianscanalpages.co.uk
