Blindwells
| Blindwells | |
|---|---|
| Council area | |
| Lieutenancy area | |
| Country | Scotland |
| Sovereign state | United Kingdom |
| Police | Scotland |
| Fire | Scottish |
| Ambulance | Scottish |
| UK Parliament | |
| Scottish Parliament | |
Blindwells is a place in East Lothian, Scotland.
A former open-cast coal mine just east of Tranent on the north-east side of the A1 just east of the Prestonpans/Tranent junction, adjacent to the estates of the Earl of Wemyss and March. The Blindwells settlement will consist of around 1600 houses is part of East Lothian's planned 4800 house total. The development is to include commercial aspects, not simply housing. The development will be a self-contained new settlement of 1,600 homes which is smaller than the Scottish New Towns created in the sixties but this large site could accommodate another 2,500 to 3,000 houses in the future. There are 130 hectares earmarked and it will have its own community centre, pre-school facility, primary and secondary schools.[1]
A series of man-made hills were built on top the site to test whether the land is stable enough to hold the proposed 1600 new homes, which will also include new shops and schools.[2]
A pool has formed at the northern part of the site and this has attracted some birds as it is one of the few standing, open waters in East Lothian. Waterbirds regularly seen here include Mute Swan*, Mallard*, Eurasian Teal, Eurasian Wigeon, Tufted Duck, Little Grebe*, Moorhen* and Coot* (* confirmed breeding since 2008 [3]). Regular counts are undertaken for BTO Wetland Bird Survey (WeBS) monitoring [4]. Other characteristic birds of the site include Grey Partridge*, Common Kestrel, Common Buzzard, Sky Lark*, Common Grasshopper Warbler, Sedge Warbler*, Reed Bunting* and Yellowhammer*, with altogether 29 species confirmed to breed since 2008, with 17 "probable" breeders and a further 9 "possible" breeders (using BTO Atlas classifications [5]). Scarcer species recorded include Marsh Harrier (occasional extended presence), Short-eared Owl, Barn Owl, Quail and Smew (drake plus 3 redheads, Feb 2012[6]). There is a rich insect fauna too with 9 species of dragonfly and damselfly having been recorded and there is a colony of Grayling.[citation needed]
Waste water treatment
A mine waste water reed bed treatment area covering an area of 5ha has been built at Blindwells, it consists of a 30m long precast concrete cascade, 1.2m deep conditioning zone and 3N° reed beds with associated inlet and outlet structures. The reed bed levels have been designed to give a gravity flow through the system and also a piped bypass system.[7]
See also
References
- ^ http://www.edinburgharchitecture.co.uk/blindwells_tranent.htm
- ^ http://www.scotsman.com/news/developers_use_man_made_hills_in_land_test_1_1193991
- ^ http://www.the-soc.org.uk/se-atlas/
- ^ http://www.bto.org/webs/
- ^ http://www.bto.org/volunteer-surveys/birdatlas
- ^ http://www.birdinglothian.co.uk
- ^ http://coal.decc.gov.uk/en/coal/cms/environment/schemes/blindwells/blindwells.aspx
55°57′25″N 2°56′10″W / 55.957°N 2.936°W
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