Hanson UK
biodiversity and geodiversity strategy and action plan
Biodiversity and geodiversity
strategyandactionplan
andaction
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Hanson UK biodiversity and geodiversity strategy and action plan
Biodiversity and geodiversity
Biodiversity – the richness and variety of life –
encompasses everything that lives on the earth,
from commonplace and abundant trees,
flowering plants and animals through to rare and
endangered species. It is directly associated with
the places where these plants and animals live
– their habitats.
These can change with the passage of time
through natural succession. They can also be
created and managed as part of the mineral
extraction process to form a valuable
biodiversity resource.
Geodiversity covers the variety of rocks, fossils,
minerals, landforms and soils that occur on our
planet, along with the natural processes that
shape the landscape. Quarrying of rock, sand,
gravel and clay offers a unique opportunity to
study geodiversity, allowing us to understand the
earth’s history and how life has evolved and to
help us to manage our environment.
Horton-in-Ribblesdale quarry in the
Yorkshire Dales National Park
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Reedbed at
Needingworth quarry,
Cambridgeshire
One of Britain’s rarest breeding birds, the
bittern, bred for the first time in 2011 at the
UK’s largest reedbed creation project at
Needingworth quarry near Huntingdon. The
nesting female, who after courtship singlehandedly rears the young, was thought to
be the first bittern to breed on the former
fenland site for more than a century.
Chris Hudson, site warden for the Royal
Society for the Protection of Birds, said:
“This is a huge moment for the reserve as it’s
the species we were most keen to attract
through Hanson’s habitat creation work.
Bitterns are entirely dependent on reedbed
for their survival and, as their population is
severely threatened across Europe, they
are in urgent need of conservation support.
This site is set to play an important role in
protecting the bittern from pressures on
coastal wetlands.”
The Hanson-RSPB wetland project at
Needingworth is being created in stages
over a 30-year period following the extraction
of up to a million tonnes of sand and gravel
every year. The nature reserve, which is
managed by the RSPB, will eventually span
seven square kilometres.
Work began on the site in 2002 and the first
restored phase was opened to the public
in September 2012. Visitors can enjoy two
way-marked waterside routes linked to
existing rights of way.
The bittern has bred in
Needingworth quarry’s
reedbeds for the first
time in a century
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Hanson UK biodiversity and geodiversity strategy and action plan
“… to conserve and enhance biological diversity within the UK, and to contribute
to the conservation of global biodiversity through all appropriate mechanisms.”
Government policy
The UK government’s biodiversity policy originated from the
Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992, with the UK biodiversity
action plan (BAP) published two years later, setting the overall
goal:
and European documents, there
is a push for the UK to update its
biodiversity policy and incorporate
the main messages.
“To conserve and enhance biological diversity within the UK,
and to contribute to the conservation of global biodiversity
through all appropriate mechanisms.”
Geology and geomorphology
have been part of government’s
conservation brief since 1949.
The UK Geodiversity Action Plan
(UKGAP) provides a framework
for geodiversity action through
common aims, themes, objectives
and targets which link national,
regional and local activities.
You can find details at
www.ukgap.org.uk
As a mechanism to protect habitats
and species in decline or under
threat, measurable, achievable,
realistic, time-bounded national
targets were set in the form of
action plans, at both the national
and local level, for a series of
priority habitats and species.
In 2010, over 190 countries met
in Nagoya, Japan, to decide on a
revised and updated strategic plan
for biodiversity leading up to 2020
with targets set including:
• awareness-raising on the values
of biodiversity
• integrating biodiversity into
development
• halting biodiversity loss
• reducing degradation and
fragmentation.
In response to this convention,
the European Union published
its Biodiversity Strategy to 2020
detailing its headline 2020 target:
“halting the loss of biodiversity and
degradation of ecosystem services
in the EU by 2020, and restoring
them in so far as feasible, while
stepping up the EU contribution of
averting global biodiversity loss.”
The added concept of ecosystem
services (the processes by which
the environment produces the
resources we use) and their
associated value within biodiversity
policy is a new, but important,
issue, particularly given that most
of Europe’s ecosystems have
been assessed to be degraded.
In the light of these international
Local geoconservation has been
driven by a desire to conserve
geological sites (such as Local
Geological Sites or Regionally
Important Geological Sites).
Local Geodiversity Action Plans
(LGAPs) provide a framework for
the delivery of geoconservation
within a defined geographical area
(usually within a county). They aim
to identify, conserve and enhance
sites; make geoconservation
relevant to people; complete
a local geodiversity audit and
influence local planning policy.
Whatley quarry
in Somerset
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Juniper planting
at Horton-in-Ribblesdale
quarry, North Yorkshire
A five-year project to establish a large area
of juniper at Hanson’s Horton-in-Ribblesdale
quarry in the Yorkshire Dales National Park is
under way. Juniper is a UK biodiversity action
plan priority species whose population is in
decline, despite efforts to encourage natural
regeneration.
Working in partnership with Hanson, the
Park authority is providing 480 locally
sourced juniper plants to be introduced over
five years within a two-hectare stock and
rabbit proof enclosure alongside the quarry.
The first phase of 100 plants began in March
2012. When complete, it will be the largest
juniper plantation in the National Park.
The enclosure is on the Malham and Arncliffe
Site of Special Scientific Interest and the
Ingleborough Complex Special Area of
Conservation. This site was chosen because
it encompasses the veteran juniper trees
on the edges of the Moughton Common
and Ingleborough Nature Reserves. The
plants are being grown from seed harvested
from an adjacent natural population then
propagated and established at Cheviot
Trees in Berwick-upon-Tweed.
Part of the juniper
plantation at Horton
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Hanson UK biodiversity and geodiversity strategy and action plan
Our approach
Hanson’s aim is to be a leading sustainable business, trusted
and respected by our stakeholders for the ethics we adopt
and the products we supply. Our approach is built around
five themes which underpin our sustainability policy and
performance indicators:
• management systems for
continual improvement
• creating sustainable
communities
• climate change and energy
• sustainable consumption and
production
• natural resource protection and
enhancing the environment.
business, allows us to manage our
production sites (both on land and
offshore) and other landholdings
to maximise biodiversity and
geodiversity gains. Many of our
sites have already made positive
contributions, with a number
designated as Sites of Special
Scientific Interest (SSSIs).
We recognise that biodiversity
and geodiversity are essential
components of sustainable
development. Careful control of
our operations by an experienced
management team, combined
with the scale and variety of the
In addition, we have developed
Memorandums of Understanding
with both Natural England and
Countryside Council for Wales.
These recognise the importance
of bio and geodiversity and include
our commitment to developing
company action plans. We also
support government and industry
initiatives to promote biodiversity
and geodiversity.
Our parent company
HeidelbergCement recognises
the positive contribution that
biodiversity can make to
sustainability, and seeks to expand
its leading role in promoting
biodiversity in its quarries
worldwide within its sustainability
ambitions for 2020. In 2010, the
Group published a guidebook
setting out best practices for the
promotion of biodiversity at its
mineral extraction sites. It defines
standards for restoration and
after-use which take into account
the economic, ecological and
social needs of the community
and support the preservation of
species and diversity.
Restoration at
Middleton Hall quarry
in Staffordshire
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Nature reserve creation
at Irthlingborough quarry,
Northamptonshire
A former Hanson sand and gravel quarry
in Northamptonshire has become part of
an internationally important nature reserve.
Irthlingborough quarry was worked in the late
1990s and restored to a mixture of lakes and
flood meadow. Along with adjoining land,
it has been designated as a SSSI, SPA,
and RAMSAR site, as it offers an important
habitat for wintering birds.
The Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire,
Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire
took over the 117-hectare site in 2012
and renamed it Irthlingborough Lakes
and Meadows. It will form part of a sevenkilometre chain of connected nature reserves
along the Nene Valley.
The Nene Valley has been transformed by
sand and gravel extraction and is now one of
the most important wintering and breeding
bird areas nationally, and a significant
international site for migrating swans, ducks
and wading birds passing through to Europe
and Scandinavia. It also hosts interesting
populations of dragonflies, small mammals,
grass snakes and plants, and now has
international protection for its biodiversity.
Irthlingborough offers
an important habitat for
wintering birds
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Hanson UK biodiversity and geodiversity strategy and action plan
Our action plans
Our biodiversity and geodiversity action plans (BAPs and
GAPs) operate at corporate and site levels and form an
integral part of our resource planning, site development,
estate management and restoration. Site BAPs allow us to
conserve and enhance habitats and species identified within
local and national action plans, while GAPs help to deliver
geological conservation and learning by the protection,
enhancement and creation of resources, and the provision of
information.
As part of the marine and
land-based mineral planning
process, we carry out
environmental impact
assessments (EIAs) to identify
impacts and mitigation. EIAs
include a detailed survey
of habitat and species and
geological resources directly and
indirectly affected by the process.
These surveys support the
development of our BAPs and
GAPs and ensure they work
towards local and national
targets. Where an EIA is not
required, we carry out similar
surveys.
A rolling programme has
been introduced to develop
site BAPs and GAPs and
they are being implemented
throughout the various stages
of mineral extraction, including
site preparation, extraction and
restoration.
Filming for BBC TV’s
The One Show
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The white-clawed crayfish
has a new home in a
Somerset quarry lake
Ark site for white-clawed
crayfish at a sand and gravel
quarry in Somerset
An Ark site for white-clawed crayfish has
been set up in a restored quarry lake in
Somerset. The site, which was featured on
BBC TV’s The One Show, was set up by
Buglife – the Invertebrate Conservation Trust
– and the Environment Agency.
White-clawed crayfish are one of the UK’s
largest freshwater invertebrates and play a
key role in the aquatic environment. For 35
years, the native crayfish has been fighting a
losing battle for food and living space against
the invading American signal crayfish. Their
only hope of surviving is through Ark projects
like the one in Somerset.
The American crayfish also carry a plague
that is fatal to the native species, so the Ark
site has to be secret and completely isolated.
which is why the Hanson quarry was chosen.
The Buglife team has moved over 50 crayfish
to the quarry and plans to add more as the
project develops.
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Hanson UK biodiversity and geodiversity strategy and action plan
Working in partnership
We continue to work in partnership with statutory and
non-statutory organisations at both national and local
level to develop and implement best practice and improve
understanding. Biodiversity and geodiversity targets will be
taken forward through existing and new agreements with
nature conservation and geological groups.
We will also ensure our site
managers are kept informed
about local action plans to
enable them to implement site
BAPs and GAPs. A key target
in our company BAP deals with
production of guidance notes
for species and habitats which
are identified as important to the
minerals sector, both on land and
offshore, where sensitive site
management, restoration and
aftercare can deliver significant
gains. Hanson already hosts many
educational visits to operational
sites and provides information
for study elsewhere. The
development of site action plans
is providing further resources that
can be used for education.
Recognising the requirement
for knowledge on the biological
value of quarry sites, our parent
company, HeidelbergCement,
launched The Quarry Life Award
in 2011. The biannual award
programme invites students
and researchers to undertake
research projects on quarries
across the world and submit
their findings into both a national
and international competition.
The projects are designed to fit
within one of four topic areas;
biodiversity in mining sites,
biodiversity and rehabilitation,
biodiversity and education and
biodiversity management during
extraction.
Dinosaur bones which have been entombed in rock for more than 210 million years are being
extracted and constructed into a complete skeleton. The rocks containing the fossilised remains of
the thecondontosaurus antiquus, a plant-eating, kangaroo-sized creature, were found at Tytherington
quarry in South Gloucestershire in the 1970s and donated to Bristol University.
Scientists and students are now painstakingly breaking up the rock to reveal the bones within after
securing a £295,000 Heritage Lottery Fund grant. About 500 bones were found at Tytherington. They
were the oldest dinosaur remains found in the UK and one of the oldest found anywhere in the world.
Parts of the exposed quarry faces are designated as a geological SSSI.
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Geological discoveries
at Wykeham quarry,
North Yorkshire
Well-preserved sediments uncovered at
Wykeham quarry near Scarborough in
North Yorkshire are helping archaeologists
learn more about the area at the time of the
end of the last Ice Age. Insect, plant and
tree remains in the silts and peat show that
temperatures rose and fell much faster than
was first thought.
The quarry faces give a valuable insight into
the region’s geology and climate around
12,000 years ago and there is a very good
sequence of sedimentary deposit built up
over the last 2,000 years which reveals
new evidence for a series of rapid climatic
changes towards the end of the last glacial
period. Experts hope to link these changes
back to ice core research going on in
Greenland.
The exposed deposits at Wykeham are
routinely inspected by archaeologists and
geologists before each extraction phase
starts.
Archaeologists are learning
more about the last Ice
Age from Wykeham quarry
sediments
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Hanson UK biodiversity and geodiversity strategy and action plan
Progress against targets
In 2005, we set a number of targets for the business. These are outlined here with an update on progress.
Target
Target date
Progress
Status
1
Improve data and information flows
Ensure biodiversity and geodiversity information (eg LBAPs/LGAPs) and data are
made available to appropriate management within the company.
Dec 2005
Information has been made available through a biodiversity and
geodiversity section of the company intranet, which includes
support information and the site BAPs and GAPs.
Achieved.
2
Undertake an audit of biodiversity and geodiversity
Carry out site resource audits, including review of existing data, and identify sites
with the most potential for bio and geodiversity action plans.
June 2006
Audit was undertaken and the development of BAPs and GAPs
prioritised on the basis of biodiversity gain, community interest and
benefit to the business.
Achieved.
3
Consider biodiversity and geodiversity in new proposals
Ensure all new development and restoration proposals consider any potential for
biodiversity and geodiversity gain, particularly for UK BAP and LBAP priority species
and habitats, SSSIs, RIGS and other geological sites of conservation value.
June 2005
This has become a standard way of working.
Achieved
and ongoing.
4
Enhance the management of biodiversity and geodiversity at active sites
Develop guidance for producing site BAPs and GAPs and make it accessible to
relevant staff.
December 2005
A standard template for BAPs and GAPs along with guidance
notes were produced in 2005 and have been in use since.
Achieved.
Introduce a rolling programme for the development and implementation of site BAPs
and GAPs with an initial target of 25 operations.
December 2006
25 BAPs and GAPs were developed by the end of 2006. The
target since 2009 has been to develop at least 10 a year. This has
been achieved and at the end of 2011 there were 92.
Achieved.
5
Education/research
Make resources from site BAPs and GAPs and other interpretative material available
to school and further education visits. Encourage educational use of sites where
appropriate.
December 2006
Many of the site BAPs and GAPs include the development of
educational resources.
Achieved
and ongoing.
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Review progress
Establish procedures to monitor performance against site BAPs and GAPs as part
of the ongoing environmental audit.
December 2005
Site BAPs are published on the intranet and part of the site
document file within the ISO 14001 EMS. These are included in
EMS audits.
Area for
ongoing work.
Monitor performance against the Hanson action plans annually and review plans
accordingly.
December 2006
Performance against plans is monitored and some have been
revised. The process is not formally recorded.
Area for
ongoing work.
Hold regular review meetings with partner organisations at site and corporate level
and report on progress.
December 2007
Meetings are held at site and corporate level in relation to
specific projects. Corporate progress is reported annually in our
sustainability report.
Achieved
and ongoing.
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Target
Target date
Progress
Status
7
Improve employee awareness
Develop awareness in biodiversity and geodiversity to facilitate integration into
general site management. Make guidance available to site managers for species and
habitats associated with the sector.
Ongoing
General guidance and best practice sheets are available on the
intranet. HeidelbergCement published a guide on biodiversity best
practice in 2010.
Achieved
and ongoing.
8
Management of SSSIs
In liaison with Natural England and the Countryside Council for Wales, work towards
achieving “favourable condition” status for all Hanson controlled Sites of Special
Scientific Interest.
Action plans
by 2005
Work ongoing in conjunction with statutory authorities. In 2012,
more than 57 per cent of sites with identified status were
“favourable” and a further 25 per cent were “recovering”.
Area for
ongoing work.
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Contribute to UK BAP targets on reedbed and fen
Through the habitat champion agreement with Natural England, work towards
increasing areas of reedbed and fen created on Hanson sites.
Ongoing
The most significant contribution has been made at Needingworth
quarry in Cambridgeshire.
Achieved
and ongoing.
Partnership links
Build upon, and develop, new partnerships to progress the development of site
BAPs and GAPs.
Ongoing
Partnership links are embodied in many site BAPs. National
organisations with whom we continue to work include Natural
England, RSPB, BTO, NAM, Buglife and Butterfly Conservation.
Achieved
and ongoing.
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Hanson UK biodiversity and geodiversity strategy and action plan
New targets
In 2009, we set a target to
increase BAPs and GAPs
by 10 a year over the next
three years, which is being
achieved. By the end of 2011,
we had action plans in place
at over 70 per cent of our
active quarry sites. Looking
further ahead, our target
for 2020 is to publish and
implement Biodiversity Action
Plans for all operational
quarries and publish
performance results.
In 2010, we introduced a new
indicator looking at quarries with
high biodiversity value. These
are defined as those located
within 500 metres of an SSSI, or
a higher designation such as a
Natura 2000 site. The number of
these sites where BAPs are being
actively implemented increased
by 20 per cent in 2011. Other
new targets are detailed
opposite.
These targets are in addition
to those shown as ongoing in
the previous table.
Review
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Target
Target date
Development of site BAPs and GAPs
Completing site BAPs for all operational mineral extraction sites prioritising
those with high biodiversity value (within 500 metres of SSSI).
2014
Extend BAPs to non-quarrying sites where appropriate.
2013
Publish all site BAPs and GAPs on the company website.
2013
Establish a methodology for tracking performance against site BAPs and
GAPs and report performance on the website.
2015
Develop a programme for continued roll-out of site GAPs to include
identification of sites to have GAPs and timescales.
2013
2
Management of SSSIs
All SSSIs in company control to attain Natural England and NRW (Natural
Resources Wales) “favourable” or “recovering” status.
2020
3
Develop staff knowledge
Develop a programme to improve staff awareness to enable local managers to
take greater ownership of site plans.
2013 on
Provide guidance for managers to identify and develop species and habitats
associated with mineral workings, and to maximise the biodiversity benefits of
non-quarrying sites.
4
External communications and education
Develop community information guides on BAPs and GAPs with specific
focus on maximising the education potential of sites.
Ongoing
Ongoing
Report annually the areas of UK-BAP priority habitat types created in line with
the Mineral Products Association’s sustainability indicators.
Annual
Report annually on development of reedbed and fen habitat, for which Hanson
is recognised as habitat champion.
Annual
Manage and promote the Quarry Life Award scheme
Biannual
The objectives and targets
of the Hanson BAP and GAP
are reviewed regularly to
ensure our commitment to
continuous improvement is
met and they remain in line
with emerging
policy/legislation. We hold
meetings with relevant
partners to discuss progress
at national and local level
and use the feedback from
this process to achieve
ongoing improvements in the
delivery of biodiversity and
geodiversity gains.
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Our business
Hanson UK is a leading supplier of heavy building materials
to the construction industry. We produce aggregates (crushed
rock, sand and gravel), ready-mixed and precast concrete,
asphalt and cement-related materials and a range of building
products. We are part of the HeidelbergCement Group, which
has leading global positions in aggregates, cement, concrete
and heavy building products.
We operate over 300
manufacturing sites and employ
around 4,000 people. The business
is split into five divisions.
Hanson Aggregates produces and
distributes crushed rock, sand and
gravel from a network of quarries,
depots and wharves. The division
includes Hanson Aggregates
Marine, Europe’s largest producer
of marine-dredged sand and gravel.
Hanson Concrete is the UK’s
largest supplier of ready-mixed
concrete from around 180 static
and mobile production plants.
Hanson Asphalt and Contracting
brings together management of our
asphalt production sites and three
contracting businesses covering
road surfacing, structural cladding
systems and brick and block laying.
Hanson Cement is a leading
manufacturer of cement, both in
bulk and in bags, and produces
Regen (ground granulated
blast furnace slag) – a cement
replacement in ready-mixed and
precast concrete. The division
includes our packed products
business which produces a range
of bagged cement and aggregate
products, Hanson Formpave, which
specialises in block paving and
sustainable urban drainage systems
(SUDS), Hanson Bath & Portland
Stone, a leading supplier of natural
stone masonry, and Hanson Floors
and Precast, which makes precast
concrete products
Hanson Building Products is one of
the UK’s largest producers of clay
bricks and also makes Thermalite
(aircrete) and aggregate blocks.
Acton ready-mixed concrete
plant in West London
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Hanson UK, Hanson House, 14 Castle Hill, Maidenhead, Berkshire SL6 4JJ n 01628 774100 n enquiries@hanson.com n www.hanson.com/uk
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