The achievement means the company’s North Wales site, known as Shotton Works, is the largest industrial manufacturing site in the country to be recognised.
When thinking of a site that produces steel, it’s not often they’re associated with being good for the environment. However, Tata Steel’s Shotton Works have become the latest winners of The Wildlife Trusts’ Biodiversity Benchmark for land management.
The award has been given to the site as a result of the organisation’s wider Shotton Sustainability Commitment launched in 2022. The commitment focuses on reducing carbon emissions, improving material efficiency and embracing biodiversity.
As part of this initiative, which includes representatives from Natural Resources Wales, Flintshire County Council Rangers and the Bumblebee Conservation Trust, Tata Steel have integrated biodiversity into their operations, setting clear policies, performance indicators and action plans to track progress.
For example, surveys and audits from the Bumblebee Conservation Trust and bird monitoring with the Merseyside Ringing Group, have helped keep an eye on whether the site is impacting surrounding wildlife.
To give context, Shotton Works is surrounded by grass snakes, badgers, dragonflies and more than 80 species of birds. What’s more, the site’s wetlands, reedbeds and tidal marshes play a vital role in storing carbon and providing essential habitats.
One of the company’s most notable conservation successes is the protection of the common tern, a seabird with amber conservation status – a title given to an animal when it is in danger of becoming extinct.
Meanwhile, Tata Steel’s biodiversity efforts extend beyond wildlife conservation. The organisation have also developed walking routes, bird hides and an education centre to allow employees and visitors to engage in nature.
‘In a world that is faced with a climate emergency, at Shotton Works we are committed to providing a positive environmental legacy,’ Matthew Roberts, Works Manager at Shotton, said. ‘Part of this includes protecting biodiversity for future generations and ensuring our industrial operations both coexist with and enhance the natural environment around us.
Image: Tata Steels’ Shotton Works site.
‘When we first launched the Shotton Sustainability Commitment in 2022, our ambition was to achieve The Wildlife Trusts’ Biodiversity Benchmark, and we are so proud and delighted to have now received that accreditation.’
Emma Wright, Quality, Health, Safety and Environmental Graduate at Tata Steel added: ‘The achievement is testament to our company-wide commitment to conserving, enhancing, and restoring biodiversity. It recognises the positive changes we have made to maximise the biodiversity we live alongside.’
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