It is most of the volunteers first time at Seaham, so after they eventually found the site we spent the day clearing scrub from around the pond. Scrub and trees developing on the pond margin can trap silt; encourage plants to grow which can take water out of the pond. The trees we removed were alder, which can grow quickly and increase the drying out process. Removal of these trees will also allow the marginal pond plant community to develop.
Volunteers clearing scrub around the pond at Seaham Sewage Treatment Works Nature Reserve
We also dug out an experimental invertebrate bank. The grassland around the pond and adjacent treatment works is species rich with an array of flowering plants and is an excellent pollinator resource. The volunteers opened up a bankside by removing vegetation to form bare ground for burrowing invertebrates. We will be back next year to review during our creeping thistle management.
Volunteers creating an invertebrate nesting site at Seaham Sewage Treatment Works Nature Reserve
Vegetation removed providing bare ground for burrowing invertebrates at Seaham Sewage Treatment Works Nature Reserve
A feast for pollinators within an urban environment at Seaham Sewage Treatment Works Nature Reserve
Seaham Sewage Treatment Works Nature Reserve after scrub clearance
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