A QUARRY in Rugby Borough is inviting people to pitch their project ideas for sustainable quarry management and compete for prizes totalling £250,000.
Smiths Concrete’s Wolston Fields quarry is opening its doors to participants in the sixth round of the Quarry Life Award, its parent company Heidelberg Materials’ biodiversity research competition.
Kingsley Molyneux, Quarry Manager at Wolston Fields quarry, said: “The protection and enhancement of biodiversity is at the core of our sustainability strategy, so our aim is to encourage projects that can support the work we are already doing to improve biodiversity and the quality of restoration at our sites.
“The Quarry Life Award aligns with our 2030 commitment to build a nature positive future and, by increasing dialogue with academics, NGOs and our local communities, is helping to inform the development of biodiversity action plans at all our sites.”
The Quarry Life Award was first established in 2011 to support and increase biodiversity at quarry sites, strengthen communication channels with neighbours, and educate and raise awareness about the importance of nature and habitats.
The award has since received more than 1,500 submissions and has generated over 450 innovative project ideas to promote and protect biodiversity.
At a national level, projects can be carried out in either the ‘research’ or ‘community’ streams, both of which offer a £4,000 top prize.
The research stream focuses on scientific projects which increase knowledge of quarry-specific ecology or lead to improved biodiversity, landscape, or water management.
It is aimed primarily at academics, scientists and research groups, with categories covering biodiversity management, habitat and species research.
The community stream is for projects that help the quarry to better connect with its neighbours and raise awareness among the wider public of the biodiversity at extraction sites. This stream is open to everyone – individuals, students, schools and community groups.
UK entries will also be eligible for the international stage of the competition, with prizes awarded in the following categories: biodiversity management, habitat and species, beyond quarry borders, biodiversity and education, connecting quarries and communities, and nature-based solutions.
The best projects in each of the six categories will be rewarded with a prize of around £8,400 each. The best project overall will receive no less than £25,300.
Visit www.quarrylifeaward.com/en to submit project proposals for Wolston Fields quarry before the deadline of November 18. A panel of experts will then select six of the proposals to become projects to be carried out between January and September 2025.
