Dynamic Druridge

The dunes of the Northumberland coast are like no others, driven by the strong sea winds into tall, narrow mounds of sand and constantly changing. “This could look different tomorrow” Steve Lowe, from Northumberland Wildlife Trust told me as we stood beside the dune system along the seven mile stretch of sand that forms Druridge Bay.

coal fragments make patterns in the water on the shore of Drurridge Bay — Coal fragments make patterns in the water where the waves lap the shores of Druridge Bay

Druridge Bay has been shaped by change – the elements, nature and human activity all play a part in creating this fascinating area. Humans have been driving that change for more than 5,000 years. Human footprints found in post-glacial deposits and other evidence, much of it uncovered in a recent archaeological project in which the Trust were partners, date human occupation from the Mesolithic period.

Over time, people changed the landscape from wilderness to farmland. Then the increasing need for coal led to the creation of an industrial landscape with underground and open cast mining. Ironically, this has eventually led to the creation of new wildlife habitat, formed by the subsidence of old mining areas, and restoration of open cast mines.

East Cheving ton nature reserve Northumberland Wildlife Trust — A flowery grass path leads into East Chevington Nature Reserve.

Wetland birds at East Chevington nature reserve. The grass is full of foraging lapwings.

Steve was showing us round some of the five Northumberland Wildlife Trust reserves that form the core area of the Dynamic Druridge project, which aims to continue the theme of change, restoring, recreating and reconnecting habitats and improving people’s access to the wildlife of the area.

East Chevington nature reserve was restored to create wetland habitats after opencast mining and passed to the Trust in 2003. In their care it has become one of the best birdwatching sites in Northumberland, with huge numbers of birds using the lakes and especially in autumn and winter. A newly planted woodland area provides an ideal place to run Forest Schools, where children can develop confidence through outdoor activities.

Reedbed at East Chevington nature reserve — The reedbeds that fringe the lake provide nesting sites for reed bunting and reed warbler, and have attracted the first marsh harriers to breed in Northumberland for 130 years.

Flower rich grassland with bloody cranesbill — Bloody cranesbill (Geranium sanguineum) is common locally, growing here in wet grassland with meadowsweet and red clover

Blue tailed damselfly Ischnura elegans — Dragonflies and damselflies zipped across the water. I like the way this blue-tailed damselfly (Ischnura elegans) is reflected in the water in Geoff’s photo.

Steve took us to the Hauxley reserve next, which is temporarily closed while Northumberland Wildlife Trust constructs the greenest building in the North East. As well as being very environmentally friendly, the amazing thing about this building is that it is being built by volunteers.

Hauxley Visitor Centre architects drawing — The concept design for the new visitor centre. Image by Brightblue Studios

The Trust secured a Heritage Lottery Fund grant to replace the previous visitor centre, which had been burnt down, with an iconic sustainable building. The project employs a site manager and the Trust staff manage the project but most of the work is done by volunteers. There was a huge sense of camaraderie among the volunteers and the work that has already been achieved was inspiring.

part of the sustainable building at Huxley nature reserve — Duncan Hutt explains how the building is designed to minimise its impact on the environment. Green roofs provide wildlife habitat as well as insulation against heat and cold, and reduce the risk of surface water flooding around the building.

I donned a hard hat and high-vis so that I could go on site, and Ducan Hutt, Head of Estates management at the Trust, showed me around the building. It is designed to minimise its impact on the environment. No concrete is used in the construction, the walls are straw bales rendered with a lime based plaster, timber is obtained locally, much of it from Northumberland Wildlife Trust’s own reserves.

The work requires some rather special skills. The building is a straw bale construction, which as well as being environmentally friendly is usually easy to build. In this case the iconic angular design meant that new construction techniques had to be developed.

Gabon used as a building material — Some of the walls are built with gabions which, as Duncan said, are basically dry stone walls in a cage. You need a good eye to pick just the right shaped stone to fill a gap to ensure that the finished wall is weatherproof.

inside Huxley Visitor centre under construction, the packed earth floor — I tried to imagine the huge amount of work that went into building the packed earth floor. Volunteers mixed clay, sand and straw and the brought it in by the barrowload, spreading and compacting to form a smooth, hardwearing surface.

I’m immensely grateful to Steve and Duncan for taking the time to show me what the Dynamic Druridge project is achieving and am already looking forward to coming back to see the completed visitor centre and the rest of the reserves in this beautiful area.