Further to my news item of the 7th June - Rare orchids killed by herbicide application - my enquiries have revealed that the number of orchids killed at the side of the A38 in Crammers Cross near Chudleigh in Devon have been vastly exaggerated by other news agencies.
A spokesperson for the Highways Agency told me this morning that the number actually lost amounted to between 5-10.
A contractor was spraying chemicals onto gorse and brambles at the road-side site as part of a biodiversity action plan using a pedestrian operated knapsack sprayer. He was applying a product called Timbrel - manufactured by Dow Agrosciences - apparently in windy conditions. Overspray contaminated the non-targeted orchids leading to their death.
A spraying contractor has a legal responsibility and a duty of care when spraying under certain conditions. The Timbrel environmental date sheet says: TIMBREL is a herbicide. Avoid damage by drift onto susceptible crops or water courses. Occasionally, e.g. in hot conditions, vapour drift may occur making it particularly important to assess risk to neighbouring vegetation.
An investigation is under way at the site after it was established that many more orchids have been cut down by a mowing machine not operated by the Highways Agency or any of their contractors.
I telephoned the Devon Wildlife Trust, unfortunately conservation manager, Giles Knight, was unavailable for a comment (I hope to hear from him shortly) but Giles is quoted on This is Exeter as saying: "It's an incredible group of flowers. For it to have been decimated to 10 per cent, it's very hard to accept.
"Roadside verges are a part of our living landscape and butterfly orchids are a very special plant. Where you get a range of them in the same place it requires sensitive management, not what it was receiving in this case."
Updated 16th June 2009
I have received this email update from Giles Knight this morning:
Hi Philip,
Regarding the orchid issue, this is just a short note to clarify the Devon Wildlife Trusts position.
* When alerted to the incident by a piece on the 10 OClock news, we discussed it at DWT, and agreed to respond in a way that highlighted the Living Landscapes that orchids and roadside verges are an integral part of
* Basing the comments I made to the local press on what we knew of the story, we endeavoured to emphasise the need for better communication between the agencies involved
* In this vein, I contacted the County Ecologist at Devon County Council, seeking to clarify their involvement and encourage better contact with the National Highways Agency
* Likewise, we alerted our own colleagues at TWT (National Office) to the need for more engagement with the Highways Agency, in order to reduce the chances of any further incidents of this nature
* Though difficult to invest too much time in damage to wildlife already incurred, our position continues to be in the spirit of encouraging communication, ensuring that jurisdictions are clearly defined and that contractors are fully aware of the value of plants such as butterfly orchids
Thank you for your interest in this matter,
Kind regards,
Giles
Giles Knight
Conservation Manager
Devon Wildlife Trust
Cricklepit Mill
Commercial Road
Exeter
EX2 4AB
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