Congratualations Ian!

can the sound be turned up ?

Ian mentioned some weblinks at start. I can't see them in Chat. Thanks. Jason

ok I'll repost them

Site Condition Formhttps://drive.google.com/file/d/1qPwoJpQiLbbKiKgVDiKxyS4Cwe15ffcX/view?usp=sharing

Site Guidancehttps://drive.google.com/file/d/1nji89GSDKsXL7K0uRnVHMIdTv-fRUp9g/view?usp=sharing

Example Monitoring Formhttps://drive.google.com/file/d/1yIstG_-MoKxG-4hK7uZHh42fpAoGhDye/view?usp=sharing

Keele site gigapans

West Site: http://gigapan.com/gigapans/220202East Side: http://gigapan.com/gigapans/220203

How often should sites be monitored?

thanks

Although you could recommend for some that more often is needed. It would be a minority but some are in more sensitive areas. I usually end up with a couple that need looking at more often.

What happens to the form after it’s been completed?

Are there any LGS which are being condition monitored regularly by voluntary groups?

presumably this would not require the same specialist knowledge as the designation process? i.e. could enthusiastic volunteers be trained up ?

I wondered if there was any sort of link to a database of GC sites?

In West Yorkshire, we completed the condition monitoring with enthusiastic volunteers, after a short training session on site.

thanks Alison

Doing it with a group is really good as it builds confidence otherwise the form can be really daunting

We found the process daunting initially, but quickly understood how it should be done, after discussion within the group. Thereafter, the monitoring was a very positive and enjoyable exercise and, as Lesley says, good for the geodiversity group.

On the issue of see previous addition of form...A percentage of paperwork is disposed of every few years, so if the original goes, you lose the information. Even with electronic storage, file space has a cost, that someone might attempt to save.

Should damage by the public be considered as part of the monitoring? (A site local to me has been damaged by fossil hunters)

yes

I think there is still an issue in that most sites may not be publically owned and private, so local planning authorities are most unlikely to have budget for LGS maintenance and if they do then focus is on public land. It would be most helpful if volunteers groups may want to raise with an owner to see if they could carry out the necessary maintenance although this can backfire - a sensitive one !

SSSi monitoring does include damage by collectors etc as well - NatureScot and the rock collecting/ fossil collecting codes help here

Answer to Chris - yes maintenance and monitoring can be problematic with private landowners and the group does need to make sure they are covered by insurance

We have had to have very large levels of insurance cover for some site monitoring

Following on from Alison's comments Berkshire Geoconservation do regular monitoring using volunteers - we set up a system of 'site champions' so one or two people took on a site as theirs. But then there are only 25 LGS in Berkshire so it is not too onerous.

Thanks Lesley. In West Yorkshire we haven't monitored, except informally, by taking more recent photos. There are 80+ LGS.

Just to let you know the recordings of the sessions will be available from the SGT website https://www.scottishgeologytrust.org/geoconservation-in-scotland-course/

I'm sure Sainsburys, as a national corporate, would react positively, perhaps via their Corporate Social Responsibility and get their 'colleagues' to remove vegetation as part of a day volunteering that think they undertake annually if there were sent a plan by Lothian & Borders Geo-consevration Group indicating exactly what needed to be removed and a decade on from last 2012 maintenance that would gain another 1-2 decades of such an important LGS for the city.

Alison, would I be able to get involved in any geodiversity groups in West Yorkshire? I am in Bradford.

Good point Chris - I have worked with many organisations and other volunteer groups to clear sites. Quite often they just love going out doing something like that. We use the wildlife trust volunteers a lot

Do we ever decide to just let things grow over and be conserved that way? That happens with some archaeology eg rock art.

yes

happens quite a lot with particularly Quaternary sites

Just a wee follow-on from last week, Chris Alcorn of West Lothian Council sent me these links:West Lothian Council ‘Planning Guidance on Soils’ – adopted April 2021 (1st of its kind in Scotland I’m led to believe) -https://www.westlothian.gov.uk/media/48547/PG-Planning-Guidance-Soil-Management-After-Use-of-Soils-on-Development-Sites-Adopted-April-2021-/pdf/PG_-_Soil_Management___After_Use_of_Soils_on_Development_Sites_-__Adopted_Version_for_Web.pdf?m=637527818523870000‘The Shale Trail – pathway to Scotland’s Oil rush’ web site: https://shaletrail.co.uk/

Really nice example, thanks

We have recommended in several cases that brambles should not be cleared from the base of a cliff, to deter illegal climbing and potential accidents.

Strathclyde group would like more help too !

Thanks all.