News: Rotherham wetlands ready for launch

The Wildlife Trust for Sheffield and Rotherham has organised a celebratory project launch on the March 27 for Rotherham's new wetland nature park. Centenary Riverside is the centrepiece of Rotherham's first phase £14 million flood alleviation scheme, which is being created through a partnership led by Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council, the Environment Agency and the Wildlife Trust for Sheffield and Rotherham, with funding from South Yorkshire Objective 1, Yorkshire Forward and the Environment Agency RFDC. Just a stone's throw from Rotherham town centre at Templeborough, the five-hectare park incorporates large industrial relics with high quality wildlife habitats including wildflower meadows, woodland and ponds. The park will become the Wildlife Trust's tenth nature reserve and will provide recreation opportunities for local people, a haven for wildlife and essential water storage in times of flood. Chief Executive of the Wildlife Trust for Sheffield and Rotherham, Nigel Doar, said: "We are delighted to be involved in creation of this new urban nature park. Wetland is an increasingly rare habitat yet the role floodplain wetlands play in natural storage of water and flood alleviation is invaluable. This site will provide a haven for wildlife as well as giving local people somewhere new to relax and enjoy the sights and sounds of nature so close to the centre of Rotherham." Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council's Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Development, Cllr Gerald Smith, said: "The massive construction works to provide flood defences in this first phase of the Renaissance Flood Alleviation Scheme has allowed a new community and wildlife resource to be created in a part of the riverside that we have been excluded from for perhaps 150 years due to the presence of heavy industry alongside the river. We are looking forward to the development of this new wetland area and the opportunities it brings for people to finally gain access to Rotherham's riverfront."

The Wildlife Trust for Sheffield and Rotherham website
Rotherham Flood Alleviation Scheme website
Rotherham