Nature recovery works to begin in Dearne Valley ( www.yorkshirewater.com )

Four nature recovery projects will begin over the summer in Dearne Valley in South Yorkshire, to complement a wider programme of investment at Yorkshire Water’s wastewater treatment sites to improve water quality in the river Dearne.

In partnership with the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, Yorkshire Water will invest in a range of habitats adjacent to wastewater treatment works in the area. Efforts will improve ponds for amphibians, dragonflies and wading birds and include the planting of trees to help woodland wildlife.

This includes the endangered Willow Tit, the UK’s most threatened resident bird. Since 1970, numbers have decreased by 94%, and they are now extinct in most of their former haunts in the south and south-east of England.

Whilst work at the treatment sites – namely Lundwood, Worsbrough, Wombwell, and Darton – is already underway, the restoration projects will formally begin in September this year. Throughout the summer, wildlife surveys will gather information on species already residing in these habitats.