wes_von_papineäu
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MANCHESTER EVENING NEWS (UK) 20 September 08 Newts delay Concorde hangar move
Concorde's new £1.1m hangar and visitor centre at Manchester Airport has been delayed after the discovery of a colony of rare newts.
Work on the high-tech hangar for the retired supersonic aircraft was halted after routine surveys of the site found dozens of protected great crested newts.
The newts were discovered in August and have now been re-homed in a pond away from the development in a £5,000 conservation project.
The hangar, at the aviation viewing park, is expected to be completed in the New Year, about three months behind the revised schedule.
It is not the first time development work at the airport has been hit by a colony of newts.
In February the M.E.N revealed how the airport has spent more than £1m re-homing the species over the last five years.
When runway two was being developed conservationists captured around 4,000 of the protected species, as well as more than 37,000 other amphibians. They were moved to 92 purpose-built ponds.
Tim Walmsley, the airport's environment manager, said: "The great crested newts are old friends of Manchester Airport.
"We routinely survey for them as a matter of course.
"Before we even submit planning permission for a project we carry out a survey of the ground for newts and as soon as we spotted one we called in the experts. "The area was ring-fenced and then we captured all the newts in buckets.
"The rules say there has to be a trapping period of 30 days and at the end of that you have to be newt-free for five days before any building work can restart.
"We caught dozens and carried them to a pond where they live safely away from the construction work."
The airport called in conservationists Natural England and applied for a licence to re-home the colony. They were captured over the last month and the area has now been declared a newt-free zone. Newt-proof plastic fencing has now been put around the zone to prevent more newts migrating to the area.
http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/s/1067547_newts_delay_concorde_hangar_move
THE TELEGRAPH (London, UK) 19 September 08 Concorde's new home invaded by greater-crested newts (Aislinn Simpson)
The creation of Concorde's new £1.1 million hangar and visitor centre had to be put on hold following the discovery of a colony of protected great crested newts.
The tiny pond-dwellers were discovered during a routine survey of the area earmarked as the new high-tech home of the retired supersonic aircraft.
Work on the project, in the grounds of Manchester Airport, was immediately halted and conservationists Natural England were called in.
The great crested newt is protected under EU law as well as the Wildlife and Countryside Act, and it is illegal to capture or kill it or disturb its habitat.
The airport authorities had to apply for a licence to re-home the newts to a pond away from the development before Natural England could begin the process of moving them out of the diggers' way.
A newt-proof plastic fence was constructed around the zone to prevent more newts setting up home.
Those inside the exclusion zone were then captured in plastic buckets and gently relocated.
The whole conservation project cost £5,000 and took over a month, but the area has now been declared a newt-free zone and work can restart.
The hangar and visitor centre will now not be completed until the new year, but the airport authorities claim to be accustomed to the newt hazard.
When the airport's second runway was being developed, conservationists had to be brought in to capture more than 4,000 of the protected newts and over 37,000 other amphibians. They were moved to 92 specially-created ponds away from the development area.
Manchester Airport's environment manager Tim Walmsley said: "The great-crested newts are old friends of Manchester Airport and we routinely survey for them as a matter of course.
"Before we even submit planning permission for a project we carry out a survey of the ground for newts and as soon as we spotted one we called in the experts."
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/main.jhtml?xml=/earth/2008/09/19/eanewt119.xml
Concorde's new £1.1m hangar and visitor centre at Manchester Airport has been delayed after the discovery of a colony of rare newts.
Work on the high-tech hangar for the retired supersonic aircraft was halted after routine surveys of the site found dozens of protected great crested newts.
The newts were discovered in August and have now been re-homed in a pond away from the development in a £5,000 conservation project.
The hangar, at the aviation viewing park, is expected to be completed in the New Year, about three months behind the revised schedule.
It is not the first time development work at the airport has been hit by a colony of newts.
In February the M.E.N revealed how the airport has spent more than £1m re-homing the species over the last five years.
When runway two was being developed conservationists captured around 4,000 of the protected species, as well as more than 37,000 other amphibians. They were moved to 92 purpose-built ponds.
Tim Walmsley, the airport's environment manager, said: "The great crested newts are old friends of Manchester Airport.
"We routinely survey for them as a matter of course.
"Before we even submit planning permission for a project we carry out a survey of the ground for newts and as soon as we spotted one we called in the experts. "The area was ring-fenced and then we captured all the newts in buckets.
"The rules say there has to be a trapping period of 30 days and at the end of that you have to be newt-free for five days before any building work can restart.
"We caught dozens and carried them to a pond where they live safely away from the construction work."
The airport called in conservationists Natural England and applied for a licence to re-home the colony. They were captured over the last month and the area has now been declared a newt-free zone. Newt-proof plastic fencing has now been put around the zone to prevent more newts migrating to the area.
http://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/s/1067547_newts_delay_concorde_hangar_move
THE TELEGRAPH (London, UK) 19 September 08 Concorde's new home invaded by greater-crested newts (Aislinn Simpson)
The creation of Concorde's new £1.1 million hangar and visitor centre had to be put on hold following the discovery of a colony of protected great crested newts.
The tiny pond-dwellers were discovered during a routine survey of the area earmarked as the new high-tech home of the retired supersonic aircraft.
Work on the project, in the grounds of Manchester Airport, was immediately halted and conservationists Natural England were called in.
The great crested newt is protected under EU law as well as the Wildlife and Countryside Act, and it is illegal to capture or kill it or disturb its habitat.
The airport authorities had to apply for a licence to re-home the newts to a pond away from the development before Natural England could begin the process of moving them out of the diggers' way.
A newt-proof plastic fence was constructed around the zone to prevent more newts setting up home.
Those inside the exclusion zone were then captured in plastic buckets and gently relocated.
The whole conservation project cost £5,000 and took over a month, but the area has now been declared a newt-free zone and work can restart.
The hangar and visitor centre will now not be completed until the new year, but the airport authorities claim to be accustomed to the newt hazard.
When the airport's second runway was being developed, conservationists had to be brought in to capture more than 4,000 of the protected newts and over 37,000 other amphibians. They were moved to 92 specially-created ponds away from the development area.
Manchester Airport's environment manager Tim Walmsley said: "The great-crested newts are old friends of Manchester Airport and we routinely survey for them as a matter of course.
"Before we even submit planning permission for a project we carry out a survey of the ground for newts and as soon as we spotted one we called in the experts."
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/earth/main.jhtml?xml=/earth/2008/09/19/eanewt119.xml