In an industry first, Network Rail’s Eastern region has been granted an Organisational Licence for great crested newts that covers nearly half of England.
The industry-leading initiative will result in new, large-scale, connected habitats being built by specialists and in turn, allow crucial railway upgrade work to take place.
The licence was granted by Natural England following a successful trial on the Midland Main Line Upgrade last year. It has now been extended to the entire Eastern region, which encompasses places like Newcastle, York, Leeds, Sheffield, Derby, Peterborough and East Anglia.
Usually found in grassland, scrub, ponds and woodland; the great crested newt is a protected species. They can sometimes be impacted by essential improvement, maintenance or safety-related work on the railway. This brand-new licence will allow teams within the Eastern region to relocate newts where necessary, keeping them out of harm’s way and, in the process, helps to create acres of vibrant new ponds and habitat.
The project is being carried out in collaboration with NatureSpace – an organisation dedicated to working with conservationists, industry experts and developers to understand, grow and protect the great crested newt’s habitat.
“This is a significant win for sustainability across the region. Our lineside habitats are a valuable asset that need management and protection in order to improve biodiversity, and create an environmentally friendly railway that’s fit for future generations.
Hamish Critchell-Ward, Environmental Manager for Network Rail’s Eastern region.
“This licence will help us strike the balance between helping lineside wildlife to thrive, whilst enabling essential railway upgrade works to get underway. It’s great that Natural England have been so supportive of this initiative, and we’re really looking forward to working with our partners NatureSpace in an approach that’s more streamlined and results in more habitat creation. It’s a win-win for nature and the railway!”
“We are delighted to help Network Rail expand their Organisational Licence for great crested newts so that it covers the whole Eastern Region Network. The Licence provides a quick and simple option that both ensures newts are conserved and allows critical rail work to proceed without delay. It’s not generally known but the rail-side vegetation can provide really important terrestrial habitat for newts, and so it’s great to see major infrastructure providers embracing their environmental responsibilities and delivering conservation gain for our endangered species – we hope others will follow Network Rail’s example.”
Dr Tom Tew, NatureSpace CEO.
“The expansion of the Network Rail Organisational Licence removes the need for individual licence applications for routine works, and will fund habitat creation along a significant part of the rail network. The largest-scale licence of its type, this has been developed with Network Rail and NatureSpace to deliver habitats at the landscape scale and benefit this iconic species.”
Duncan Brown, Operations Manager for District-Level Licensing at Natural England.
