Biodiversity at Encirc

Although we are the most sustainable business in the glass-making industry, we are always looking for new ways to improve how our sites operate – especially when it comes to the environment.

Last year, our Elton site welcomed a Landscape and Nature Management Plan, drawn up by Conservation Contracts North West (CCNW). The plan was devised with the intention of maintaining and preserving wildlife and its semi-natural habitats within our 60 hectare site over the next four years.

In early 2016, our Derrylin site reached out to Ulster Wildlife, Northern Ireland’s largest local conservation charity, to ask for help in improving the biodiversity of the facility. During the summer of 2016, Ulster Wildlife spent two months making observations on the species and habitats living on the site, and drew up a plan based on their research.

Both CCNW and Ulster Wildlife aim to inspire people to champion wildlife, promoting the value of nature and the impact it has on our own lives. A key part of their policies focuses on promoting the health and well-being benefits which making time to enjoy the natural environment can have.

Our ongoing projects with the respective associations hope to improve Encirc’s own biodiversity and that of our local communities. By working with CCNW and Ulster Wildlife on a number of projects across both sites, we hope to conserve and enhance the variety and health of species living within and around the Elton and Derrylin plants, as well as ensuring that Encirc remains at the forefront of progressive action in the sector.

The industrial nature of the sites obviously places limitations on the range of species we can house. However, the research carried out by CCNW and Ulster Wildlife has identified an impressive range of wildlife already populating our sites.

Moving forwards, one of the key priorities will be ensuring that our existing wildlife continues to cohabit peacefully in its surroundings. However, there are some exciting enhancement works and ideas that can be introduced to improve the nature value of our facility.

Big plans are already being put into place to improve our air, water and noise quality, which are set to benefit both human and wildlife communities alike. These include the installation of bird and bat boxes on-site, as well as lots of new plants.

This is an important project for our business for a number of reasons. With all the recent, devastating news about how plastic pollution has been impacting our natural world, it is becoming more critical than ever to help protect our wildlife where possible. We hope that in working with our local wildlife organisations, the preservation of our sites’ ecosystems will reflect the hard work Encirc does to support sustainability in our local communities, and the wider natural world.