Undertake specific measures to protect valued species

After more than one 100 trees were slaughtered in a few months upon order of the city in 2016, the association "Défenses des Arbres en Pays d'Aix" was created by multiple NGOs with the purpose of saving the plant heritage of Aix-en-Provence. Their main goal was to encourage the city's council to establish a "Charter for trees" dedicated to the city of Aix en Provence (Ref. 1). The work of the association was useful as the city decided to engage in a new charter, and prepare a new planting season with 64 trees (in 2016) (Ref. 4). The Charter was developed in 2017 (Ref. 6) and an environmental management plan for activities was developed in 2018 (Ref. 7).

The reserve is a biodiversity hot-spot within Cardiff Bay. The reedbed and other aquatic plants, are very productive vegetation and a habitat for birds. Prior to the construction of the Cardiff Bay Barrage, it was made up of mudflats and salt marsh. (Ref 1) The site was chosen by Cardiff Harbour Authority to create a new environment and compensate in part for the loss of the mudflats which were submerged after completion of the Cardiff Bay Barrage. Floating timber structures serve as breeding areas for birds, an underwater bund prevents wave erosion, and a boom keeps out waterborne debris (Ref 5).

Cardiff City Council and Urban Buzz brought together local organizations, community groups supporting wildlife, to create environments to encourage more bees, butterflies, hoverflies and other insects. (ref 1). One project inspired by Urban Buzz is Pharma Bee, a project housed and run by Cardiff University’s School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences, that worked to create a bee-friendly campus through their PharmaBees team (ref 7). In association with Urban Buzz, a project run by BugLife, it renovated the Cardiff University’s Redwood Building by planting bee-friendly plants (ref 2), installed beehives and trained bee-keepers (ref 7). The efforts were then expanded to the Hayden Ellis building on Cardiff University's campus (ref 7).

The Interpretation Centre at the Cardiff Castle is displaying a green roof of wildflowers. As well as changing the look of the roof, the wildflower meadow has increased the biodiversity of the area. The nectar-rich species of wildflower turf attract bees, butterflies and other pollinators. The roof had a simple irrigation system built into the substrate where the maintenance would be minimal (ref 3).

The project aimed to improve the Owler Beck riverbody catchment in Wakefield. Data collected by the Environment Agency revealed that the Owler Beck catchment is struggling to achieve the 'good ecological status' needed in order to meet the European Water Framework Directive. This is likely due to years of alterations that have removed the diversity of the environments and left the watercourse silty. The project aimed to address these issues by working on the priority sites along the river. A multi-phased scheme had been designed to relieve these pressures and deliver benefits for both people and wildlife across the catchment. (Ref. 1) The project is completed as of 2019 with 200m of river reach length covered in the catchment area. (Ref 7)

“The Blooming Meadows project aimed to create a network of wildflower meadows across the West Yorkshire landscape [5 districts, including sites managed by Wakefield Council]. In the UK grasslands are one of our most vital habitats, supporting one fifth of all species listed as 'of conservation concern' (known as priority species) - the most supported by any habitat. Sadly, the UK has lost 97% of its wildlife-rich grasslands since the 1940s. Yorkshire Wild Trust worked to create blooming meadows which support some of the wildlife mentioned above across West Yorkshire.” (Ref. 1, 2)

“The Went Water Vole Project, a two year project working with local people and landowners throughout the River Went catchment to secure the future survival for one of the most significant water vole populations in West Yorkshire. Work also involves carry out habitat restoration and creation schemes across the area to link up isolated water vole colonies and encourage the re-population of some of their old ranges.” (Ref. 1)

Bute Park is a riverside green spot with an arboretum and gardens, containing a broad range of ecosystems supporting a wide variety of living species (ref 4). The historic Mill Leat had been dry since the 1970s."The word "leat" refers to "an open watercourse conducting water to a mill". The Mill Leat sits on the same site as a former millpond at the end of the original medieval millstream. It supplied water to corn mills located to the south of the Wst Gate and contained water well into the 1970s." (Ref 10) .Mill Leat Restoration or the re-flooding of the dry water body was a major deliverable under the Bute Park Restoration project (ref 2). In 2013 the overgrown channel was excavated, lined and refilled with water as part of the Bute Park Restoration Project (Ref 2). It enhanced the character of the park and provided a new habitat for wildlife (ref 1). Now re-flooded, Mill Leat is self-contained, self-regulating and self-circulating. It has reduced the risk of flooding and created a sustainable water feature (ref 2).

The initiative involves establishing beehives on the roofs of the Catholic University of Lublin and the Centre for the Meetings of Cultures. It seeks to provide the habitat for the bees in the city, help in pollination, educate the society about the bees and shape more ecologically-friendly attitudes among the students, faculty and visitors. It should also produce honey that can be sold or distributed free of charge, which can serve in a promotional tool of the two institutions. The Centre for the Meetings of Cultures has additionally opened a garden to provide food for the pollinators [1,2,3,4,6]. In 2020, the initiative is still ongoing and expanding. Every year, the university organizes a competition about the life of bees for various age groups [7].

Wakefield Council is "responsible for managing over 2650 acres of grass in parks and countryside areas across the Wakefield district (this includes cutting the grass)". Since 2015, there are small areas where "the grass is being left to grow" naturally for environmental benefits. (Ref. 1) The objective of the project by leaving derelict some grass areas are that "the environmental benefits of leaving some grass to grow naturally include encouraging wild flowers to grow which will support bees and other insects, and aiding drainage to reduce flood risk" (Ref 1).