Habitat Management Plan

A Habitat Management Plan has been drawn up to ensure that the nature conservation features of the site are protected and, where possible, enhanced. The plan identifies methods to be adopted for the protection and/or enhancement of key ecological features.

Habitats to be Retained

The reclamation and restoration of the site, incorporates the conservation of the existing habitats of nature conservation interest and the creation of others:

• Retention and Protection of Bog Habitats. The main habitat feature of nature conservation interest on the site is the blanket bog of Polkemmet Moor. Active blanket bog is listed on Annex 1 of the EC Habitats Directive as it is a natural habitat type of community interest and it is also identified as a priority habitat in the UK Biodiversity Action Plan. Historically much of the Polkemmet area was part of a larger bog mire complex of blanket, valley and raised mire together with associated plant communities. However, this complex has been fragmented by agriculture, forestry and nearby coal mining and the condition of the remaining bog has been modified to a greater or lesser degree by drainage and associated peat extraction
• Retention and Protection of Sections of Watercourse. The central length of the Cultrig Burn has been diverted during opencast operations and a new watercourse alignment created which will include significantly enhanced habitats. The upstream length of the Cultrig Burn, will be retained and protected from site operations by the construction of demarcation fencing. The section of watercourse located downstream from the diversion will also be retained, but will be enhanced to provide an improved watercourse, with better quality habitat provision.
• The entire lengths of the two upstream channels of the Bickerton Burn will be replaced by new watercourses and features within the Donald Ross Memorial golf course development.
• The Polkemmet and wider Heartlands sites also include several other watercourses and associated vegetation. Sections of these watercourses will be retained and protected during the lifetime of the development. Elsewhere, where diversions are required, these will incorporate enhanced habitat.
• The River Almond is located alongside the proposed new M8 Motorway interchange, but steps will be implemented to ensure its protection from inadvertent damage during construction operations.
• Retention of Woodland and Tree Belts. Mature beech trees located in the north of the site will be retained, including some of those around Cult Farm and north of Rigghouse Farm. In addition, areas of existing coniferous plantation in the southwest of the site will also be retained where they will form part of the landscape of the proposed golf courses.

Habitat Creation

The creation of new habitats will start during the operational opencast period, when progressive restoration will be ongoing. However, some works will be undertaken once the overburden mound has been backfilled into the final void.

• Approximately 49ha (hectacres) of Peatland Habitats will be created using disturbed peat in "canal" and wider depository areas.
• Approximately 25ha of Upland Heath and Wetland/Fen Communities will be created on peat. Much of this will be located immediately adjacent to the main area of retained bog habitat (Polkemmet Moor) to provide a buffer zone to the retained bog and enlarge the contiguous area of bog/heathland habitat present at the site.
• Approximately 24ha of Woodland will also be created as part of the layout of the Donald Ross Memorial golf courses. It is estimated that up to 10000 young trees will be sourced from the Polkemmet site and used to help create these woodlands. As part of this work a specially created tree nursery has been set up adjacent to the Polkemmet site where the trees are to be stored prior to planting out in the newly created woodland areas.
• Watercourses. Sections of the Cultrig and Bickerton Burns have been diverted during the open casting works and the restoration of these watercourses will incorporate significant habitat enhancements, comprising a range of in-channel features as well as embankments designed to benefit water voles and a range of invertebrates which will in turn attract larger species such as birds and bats. In total approximately 1500m of new watercourse will be created.
• Waterbodies. Eleven ponds/wetlands will be created as part of the Donald Ross Memorial golf course design, covering a total area of approximately 30 ha. These will vary in character from deeper water bodies, to ephemeral pools and marshy zones. Features that will be incorporated include shallow margins, steep earth banks suitable for colonisation by water voles and beds of emergent vegetation.
• Grasslands. A range of grassland types will be created as part of the golf course development, addressing the need for a variety of functions associated with the amenity functions of the site, as well as offering significant additional habitat for wildlife. More diverse wildflower grasslands using appropriate and local native species will be allowed to develop, through appropriate management, on existing areas of pasture, as well as alongside the wooded areas, creating green wildlife corridors, in the rough/semi rough areas and the fairways. The greens and the tee grasslands will be purely of amenity interest, with specifically tailored species mixes.

In addition to the above habitats the Polkemmet site is home to water voles (Arvicola terrestris), which will in the very near future be legally protected. At the moment only their habitat is protected. These have been recorded for a number of years along both the Cultrig and Bickerton Burns. Although field signs have always indicated that the population sizes were relatively small within the site boundary, further populations occur downstream of the site on both burns. A Water Vole Mitigation Plan has therefore been developed and is being implemented to protect water voles during the course of the works. It is anticipated that enhancements to the watercourses and water bodies, described above, will in the longer term offer considerable benefits to the water vole population.

Monitoring and Implementation

Dr Graham Burt-Smith, of Entec UK Ltd, has been appointed as the ecological advisor to the scheme. His role is to monitor the works detailed above, be responsible for advising on any practical ecological issues that may arise and, where necessary, make recommendations to the Habitat Management Advisory Committee where changes to the Habitat Management Plan may be required. The Habitat Management Advisory Committee comprises representatives from the developer (Ecosse Regeneration), West Lothian Council and Scottish Natural Heritage together with the Ecological Advisor and it is their collective responsibility to ensure that the Habitat Management and Water Vole Mitigation Plans are successfully implemented

For information

A hectacre = 10,000 square metres (m²) or 2.471 acres. Trafalgar Square in London was laid out as one hectacre.