URBAN FOREST AND GREENSPACE
ACTION PLAN
Compiled by Northamptonshire County Council
The Trees and Woodlands Sub Group of the
Northamptonshire Biodiversity Partnership Group has developed this Plan. The group comprises representatives from Boughton
Estate, English Nature, Forestry Commission, Northamptonshire County Council,
Rockingham Forest Trust, Royal Forestry Society and the Wildlife Trust..
Lead Agencies: Public Sector: Forestry Commission
Voluntary
Sector: Royal Forestry Society
Northamptonshire has a great variety of
valuable urban wildlife. As well as
ancient woodlands, urban sites such as industrial land, urban parks and gardens
can provide a refuge for once widespread plants and animals.
Nature conservation in urban areas is not only
about providing for wildlife. Wildlife
can play an important part in people’s lives and therefore should not be
restricted to towns and cities. As 62%
of the county’s population live in the six major urban areas (Northampton,
Daventry, Wellingborough, Kettering, Corby and Rushden), the need for a healthy
environment is particularly important.
Habitats included in this plan:
Relics of past
management systems: veteran trees and hedgerows in urban areas
Encapsulated
countryside: woodlands
Managed
habitats: street trees; trees in private gardens; young and semi-mature trees
in recreation areas,
urban
greenspace
Associated Plans:
Lowland Wood
Pasture and Parkland
The Built
Environment
2.1.1 Relics
of Past Management Systems eg. Veteran Trees in urban areas
These include examples of land or trees which were originally
managed or planted in the open countryside. Due to urban expansion they have
now become urban features. Old field
boundary hedges are a good example of this: they could be relics from a
pre-Enclosure field system which has gradually been encroached upon by new
development which today are surrounded by roads, houses or as part of an urban
greenspace. Veteran trees, those which
are notable for their age and stature could either be relics of an old field
system, such as hedgerow trees, or part of a more formal parkland setting from
old manor houses.
Example One: Hedgerow on Bradlaugh Fields Nature Reserve,
Kingsthorpe, Northampton Grid Ref: SP763642.
This hedge now
acts as a boundary between the Nature Reserve and the playing fields of the
nearby school. It is a dense, bushy and
attractive hedge situated on an ancient earth bank. It is very rich in woody species (15 recorded), which include
abundant crab apple, field maple, midland hawthorn and hazel. A fine hedge of
great antiquity.
2.1.2
Encapsulated Woodlands
These are areas of countryside which have had
the surrounding land developed, leaving the woodlands as “islands” surrounded
by roads and buildings. This affects
the natural processes in these woodlands in several ways: greater disturbance
from humans and animals than would otherwise be expected; limited immigration
of new species which can leave the woodland vulnerable to pests and diseases
and ultimately its destruction as the demand for development land continues to
increase.
Example Two: Lings
Wood Nature Reserve, Lings, Northampton.
Grid Ref: SP802638
This woodland
covers 23ha in the Eastern District of Northampton, an area which underwent
extensive expansion for several decades.
This gave Northampton Borough Council the opportunity to acquire the
woodland for the benefit of the people of Northampton. In the 16th century the area was
common land of grass, heather, gorse and birch. By the beginning of this century it was mixed deciduous woodland,
some of which was cut down and replaced with conifers in the 1940’s. The woodland now houses the HQ of the
Wildlife Trust. There is public access
throughout the woodland.
Trees and shrubs, in streets, recreation areas
or private gardens, play a vital part in making our urban areas more pleasant
places to live. They perform a number
of functions: acting as pollution sinks; reducing noise; creating shade;
softening the built environment and reinforcing local distinctiveness. Urban grassland offers a potential habitat
for wildflower species and presents opportunities to greatly enhance visual
diversity and delight. The scope for
increasing biodiversity in these managed areas is extensive, given agreement to
alter maintenance practices.
Example Three: Brackley High Street, Brackley,
Northamptonshire Grid Ref: SP5837
This
tree-lined street has over 80 mixed aged Limes and Plane trees, ranging from
approximately 80 years old to only 10 years old. These trees create a well-known feature in the town and are
managed by the Highways Authority.
Bullfinch (Pyrrhula
pyrrhula), Song Thrush (Turdus
philomelos) and Spotted Flycatcher (Muscicapa
striata)
The majority of local priority species are
beetles associated with urban trees.
See Appendix 5 Towns and
Villages Priority Species for full list.
·
Conflicting pressures for land use and
consequent loss of habitat.
·
Public perception that management to trees and
woodlands, how ever beneficial, may be damaging – despite increasing public
interest in trees.
·
Public perception that land not managed intensively
is not cared for and can therefore be abused.
·
Lack of management of wildlife sites. Numerous
small and dispersed sites increase management costs.
·
Disturbance, trampling and heavy use on
sensitive sites.
·
Inappropriate management of valuable assets to
overcompensate for public safety and to create “tidy” landscapes.
·
Willingness of some planning authorities to
allow the removal of trees during and following development.
·
Poor specifications for urban tree management
(planting and maintenance) and lack of resources to take offending contractors
to task. Excessive strimming and
staking are the most prevalent problems.
·
Specifications for grounds maintenance works
are based upon traditional expectations and the most cost-effective practice.
·
Conflicts between trees and the foundations of
older houses, especially prevalent in areas with high clay content in soil.
·
Protection of certain species under the
Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 (e.g. badgers, breeding birds, bats and rare
plants and animals).
·
The occupiers Liability Act 1984 puts a “common
duty of care” onto landowners to ensure that a tree does not cause harm to
anybody. This has meant those old trees
in woodlands and mature street trees are often lost due to perceived public
safety issues.
Local authorities play a major part in the conservation
and management of Northamptonshire’s wildlife resource. Site protection, wildlife management and
maintaining a diversity of linked networks to enhance biodiversity have been
clearly defined in Planning Policy Guidance 9.
Local authorities help meet these responsibilities through:
·
Protection of sites and wildlife features;
·
Minimising the effects of development on
biodiversity
·
Declaration of statutory Local Nature Reserves
in urban areas
·
Management of wildlife sites and open
greenspace
·
Obligatory planning consultation between the
local planning authority and the Forestry Commission on any application (either
new or extension to existing) within 500m of the boundary of an ancient
woodland, as defined by English Nature’s Ancient Woodland Inventory.
·
The need for a felling licence from the
Forestry Commission for felling timber volumes greater than 5m3 per
calendar quarter.
·
Tree Preservation Orders– administered by the
local planning authority.
·
The local planning authorities advise on Tree
Preservation Orders and local tree issues.
·
A range of consultants offer advice.
·
The Wildlife Trust employs nature reserve
managers to carry out the management of urban Local Nature Reserves, including
Lings Wood, Northampton and Kings Wood, Corby.
6. URBAN FOREST AND GREENSPACE OBJECTIVES AND ACTIONS
|
|
OBJECTIVE |
ACTION |
LEAD AGENCY |
PARTNERS |
TARGETS |
|
6.1 |
Policy and Legislation |
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Objective One: Ensure that the impact on existing trees and
woodlands in minimised as a result of new development through the planning
process |
Include specific urban tree and woodland
protection policies within local plans, supplementary planning guidance or
local Tree and Woodland Strategies |
Local Authorities |
|
By 2005 |
|
|
|
Define all urban woodland that fulfils the
County Wildlife Site criteria and identify in local plans |
Wildlife Trust |
Local Authorities |
By 2003 |
6.2
|
Site safeguard, management and creation |
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|
Objective Two: Safeguard existing trees and woodland |
Ensure that all important trees and woodlands
under perceived threat are protected by Tree Preservation Orders |
Local Authorities |
|
Throughout Action Plan Period |
|
|
|
Ensure that public utilities conform to the
guidelines on the protection of street trees |
Local Authorities |
|
By 2001 and throughout the plan period |
|
|
Objective Three: Improve the quality of urban land management |
Prepare a prioritised inventory of urban
woodlands and their condition. Prepare and implement improved management
plans where appropriate |
Wildlife Trust |
Local Authorities |
Inventory completed by 2002 |
|
|
|
Review specifications for grounds maintenance
works in the context of sustainability commitments |
Local Authorities |
|
Specifications reviewed by 2003 |
|
|
Objective Four: Increase the extent of urban forest |
Ensure that developers establish areas of new
native woodland as part of new residential, commercial and industrial
developments. Maximise opportunities offered by Section 106 Agreements |
Local Authorities |
Forestry Commission, developers |
Double the extent of urban forest by 2010 |
|
|
|
Plant native trees and woodlands on
appropriate public open spaces and in the urban fringe |
Local Authorities |
Forestry Commission |
Double the extent of urban forest by 2010 |
|
|
|
Encourage the public to plant suitable native
trees in their gardens |
Local Authorities |
BTCV |
Double the extent of urban forest by 2010 |
6.3
|
Advisory |
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|
|
Objective Five: Ensure that management advice and information
to improve the biodiversity of urban trees and woodlands and grassland is
readily available to landowners and managers. |
All Local Authorities to employ (or have
access to) specialist arboricultural, woodland and ecological advisors |
Local Authorities |
Wildlife Trust, Forestry Commission |
By 2002 |
|
|
|
Produce and publicise guidance notes. Urban
tree and woodland management guidance to be included in Landscape Guidelines
Handbook |
County Council |
Local Authorities, Forestry Commission |
By 2002 |
|
|
Objective Six: Raise awareness amongst key decision-makers,
woodland managers and Local Authority grounds maintenance staff on the
importance of urban forests |
Organise appropriate training days for
specific target groups. Follow up with annual updates |
Forestry Commission Wildlife Trust |
Local Authorities |
First event in 2002 and then ongoing
throughout the plan period |
|
|
|
Develop a local accreditation scheme for tree
surgeons and advisors to ensure that the implications for biodiversity are fully
considered |
County Council |
Local Authorities, Wildlife Trust |
Scheme in place by 2004 |
|
6.4 |
Monitoring and Research |
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|
Objective Seven: Determine the extent of urban forest in
Northamptonshire |
Undertake desktop and field survey to
determine the extent of urban forest in the county |
Wildlife Trust |
Local Authorities |
By 2003 |
6.5
|
Communication and Publicity
|
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|
|
Objective Eight:
Increase awareness of the importance of urban
trees, woodland and grassland |
Hold an annual urban public tree planting
event in each local authority area during National Tree Week |
Local Authorities |
BTCV |
Commencing 2001, then annually throughout the
plan period |
|
|
|
Appoint Urban Tree Wardens |
Local Authorities |
|
Appoint 30 Urban Tree Wardens by 2003 |
|
|
|
Develop a series of annual publicity
campaigns and projects eg. Urban Veteran Tree Survey |
Wildlife Trust |
Local Authorities |
Commencing 2002 |
|
|
|
Develop a series of Urban Tree Trails |
Local Authorities (through Tree Warden
Network) |
|
5 urban tree trails in place by 2005 |
|
|
|
Identify sites with potential to
significantly increase the extent of urban land in conservation management
and introduce appropriate management regimes |
Local Authorities |
Wildlife Trust |
At least one pilot site in each LA area by
2003 |
|
|
Objective Nine: Publicise the progress made in delivering
this Action Plan in a BAP Annual Report |
|
|
BAP Partners |
Annual |