Ecological Effects on Greave's Forest School

Environmental Policy and Environmental Impact Assessment

We aim to engender a high level of respect for the natural world and encourage all to be involved in decisions about their environment and safety. The following is an Ecological Impact Matrix. This is used for planning sessions and thinking about how each of these can be minimalised.

Area Impacted on
Activity	Ground Layer	Field Layer	Shrub Layer	Canopy Layer	Invertebrates	Soil and water	Nesting birds	Small mammals
Trampling	May damage	May disturb	May disturb		May damage habitat/ creature	May wear down soil	May disturb	May damage habitat/ creature
Mini-beast / scavenger hunt	May damage	May damage	May disturb		May damage habitat/ creature	May wear down soil	May disturb	May damage habitat/ creature
Shelter building	May wear / damage deadwood supplies	May disturb	May disturb	May damage lower levels/  lower branches rested on	May disturb	May disturb	Noise and vibration may disturb	Noise and vibration may disturb
Campfire	May damage deadwood supplies for fuel	Pit area may disturb	Pit area may disturb	Smoke may disturb	May disturb	May disturb in pit: heat/ extra water to extinguish fire	Smoke may disturb	Smoke may disturb
Coppicing (maintenance and health and safety)	May wear away / benefit from natural light	May disturb / benefit from natural light	May disturb / benefit from natural light	May damage	May disturb	May disturb	May damage habitats	May disturb
Toilet (indoor toileting so N/A)

Activity Impact Mitigation

On site activities, such as fires, will follow practices that minimise impact on wildlife through being mindful of what is burnt and how any residues are disposed of. Before leaving a site we will ensure that any litter is collected, removed from the site and disposed of suitably.

Collecting Wood: Dead wood is important to any woodland ecology as it has a multitude of uses, from homes for mini beasts to beds for fungi, so a lack of it is bad for any woodland habitat.

·         Limit the frequency of fires and evaluate the amount of dry, dead wood before having a fire. Collect only the minimum amount required for any given fire.

·         Reserve specific areas specifically for the conservation of dead wood.

Fires: Changes in soil chemistry can lead to increases in PH levels, carbon, phosphorous, etc. which can be harmful to some plants, whilst other essential nutrients may be depleted.

Fire can travel underground to roots even after appearing to be extinguished.

•                    Designate fixed locations for fires on parts of the site that aren’t particularly ecologically interesting or unique.

•          If possible, dispose of ash into patches of nettles.

•          Ensure that all fires are extinguished fully before leaving a site.

•          Where needed, use a fire wok to contain fire.

Cooking: Food waste may attract animals to the site or increase numbers of certain species, potentially leading to adverse changes in biodiversity.

·         Inform participants of these impacts and provide a container (to be taken away) or an ecologically sound place for food disposal.

Tree Climbing, Shelter Building and Swings: - damage to trees.

·         Restrict these activities to suitable trees that will tolerate them.

Collecting: Natural Damage to plants

·         Inform groups as to which types of plants are more sensitive to losing their leaves or flowers than others and different seasons affect this too, plants are best to pick, if any.

·         Ensure leaves or flowers are taken from fallen parts where possible.

·         Limit the frequency of this type of activity.

·         Leave plants unpicked whenever picking is not necessary.

  

Sustainable procurement

Greave Primary School’s Forest School (PGP – FS) holds environmental sustainability as a core value. We understand that the choices we make as buyers and consumers are a large part of our footprint and therefore strive to take this into account in our purchases. As far as possible we will buy items which are produced: as locally as possible; organically; from sustainable or renewable sources; ethically, with regards to environment, and workers’ and animal welfare; and with minimum packaging.