forestry.gov.uk
Thankful county foresters were glad to forego firing up their new ‘green’ flue for fear of frying their feathered friends.
The Forestry Commission team were about to ignite their new environmentally friendly heating system when an eagle-eyed ornithologist called a dramatic halt.
RSBP volunteer Juliette Buttler was on duty at the foresters’ Fineshade base, near Corby, welcoming visitors to the Rockingham Forest Red Kite centre.
But when her binoculars went in the direction of the new boiler room she glimpsed a flash of steel blue streaking in through a gap in the roof.
Closer investigation revealed a family of swallows had set up home in the rafters near the hot-house chimney stack.
Forest ranger Cheryl Joyce, said: “We were relieved that Juliette spotted the birds just in time.
“Had we fired up the boiler as we planned the chicks would almost certainly have been lost.
“Now we’ve stopped all testing until the baby swallows have fledged and flown the nest.”
Miss Joyce said that steps would be taken to ensure that no more creatures could wander into danger.
She said that from now their new boiler’s mission would be to protect wildlife.
Once the high-performance system is turned on it will generate sufficient energy to supply the entire Fineshade complex.
However, its burners run on nothing but coppice timber taken from the Forestry Commission’s own woodlands.
As the new crop of fuel grows the plants will absorb more carbon dioxide from the air, and fix it in their cells, than the boiler gives off generating heat.
And as the new willow and hazel plantations develop they will also provide precious habitats for a huge range of wildlife, including butterflies and dormice.
More information about the many uses of coppice timber can be found on the www.forestry.gov.uk website.
NOTES TO EDITORS
For further information please contact Miss Cheryl Joyce, Forestry Commission Ranger, on 01780 444394.
e-mail: cheryl.joyce@forestry.gsi.gov.uk
