27 May 2015
Walk on the wild side with Merseylink
Nature lovers in Halton are being offered the chance to take part in a special wildlife walk with the Mersey Gateway Project.
The ‘Meadow Meander' walk will take place on Sunday 14 June 2015 from the Wigg Island visitor centrein Runcorn. The walk starts at 10am-12noon and is repeated at 2pm-4pm.
This is the first in a series of three guided nature events organised by construction consortium Merseylink with support from the Mersey Gateway Environmental Trust, the charity set up to conserve, protect and improve the environment across the Upper Mersey Estuary.
Jack Swan, one of Cheshire's leading botanists, and Jeff Clarke, an expert in local nature and ecology, will lead the walk.
Wildlife enthusiasts will be taken on a nature trail across Wigg Island, where they will receive a talk from Jack and Jeff about how to identify the numerous meadow flowers on the site. There will also be a ‘tree test trail' challenge for children and young people.
All of the species spotted will be logged and the data will be shared with RECORD, the local biological records centre serving Cheshire, Halton, Warrington and the Wirral.
Two further nature events, ‘Hawks and Hawkers' and ‘Beetlemania', will take place during the summer.
Victoria Pollard, Merseylink's environmental manager, said:
"The Mersey Estuary is a rich and diverse environment and this series of nature events has been organised so we can share our knowledge of this important ecological area. The Meadow Meander walk presents a great opportunity for people to learn more about their local natural environment."
Hugh O'Connor, general manager of Merseylink, said:
"The Mersey Gateway Project is creating all sorts of exciting opportunities to improve the local environment for the future. We're working hard to make sure we protect and preserve important habitats like those on Wigg Island. A long-term plan is being developed in conjunction with the Environmental Trust to landscape right across the site and regenerate the important saltmarsh ecosystem."
Thirty places are available on each Meadow Meander walk.
Tickets are priced at £2 for adults and are free for children under 16 years of age. All profit from the ticket sales will be donated to local environmental charities.
Pleasefollow this linkto book your ticket, or contact Merseylink on 0333 200 1164.
Ends
For further information please contact Chris Sealey or Chris Taylor at DTW on 01287 610 404 / 07786 512 833 / 07949 287 356 or emailchris.sealey@dtw.co.ukorchris@dtw.co.uk.
Editors Notes:
About the project
The Mersey Gateway Project will be one of the largest infrastructure initiatives in the UK over the coming years. The Mersey Gateway Project has been identified as one of the UK government's Top 40 priority projects in theNational Infrastructure Planand it has been recognised by KPMG as one ofthe‘Top 100 infrastructure projects around the globe'.
Its features will include:
- a 1,000m long cable stay bridge consisting of four spans supported from three towers in the estuary;
- a unique design where the 80m high central tower will be shorter than the two outer towers, which will be 110m (north tower) and 125m (south tower) ;
- a total length (including the bridge and approach viaducts) of 2.13km;
- a deck carrying six lanes of traffic (three in each direction) with a speed limit of 60mph;
- up to 30 supporting piers carrying it across the approach viaducts; and
- a curved approach at each end of the bridge giving varying views of its unique design and maximising its visual impact.
The economic, transport and social benefits the project will bring to the region include:
- 470 permanent full-time equivalent jobs on site during construction
- 4,640 permanent direct and indirect jobs
- £61.9 million a year in Gross Value Added from the new jobs by 2030.
When it opens in 2017, both the new bridge and the Silver Jubilee Bridge will be tolled, but they will be free* to all Halton residents.
*Residents of Halton will still need to register to use the bridges and there will be a small charge for this.
You can find out more about the project atwww.merseygateway.co.uk.
About the Merseylink consortium
The Merseylink Consortium was appointed by Halton Borough Council as the project company in 2014, on a 30-year contract to design, build, finance and operate the project.
Its equity partners are Macquarie Capital Group Limited, BBGI, and FCC Construcción. The construction joint venture is made up of Kier Infrastructure and Overseas Limited, Samsung C&T Corporation and FCC Construcción S.A.
Sanef S.A. will deliver and operate the tolling solution for the consortium.