Children from Mrs Ethelston's Primary Academy in Uplyme have been working with representatives of the Uplyme Village Green Trustees, the environmental education organisation Little Green Change, and the River Lim Action Group to help tackle the on-going issue of river bank erosion in Uplyme and Lyme Regis by planting willow whips and sedge plants.
Once established, the planting will also help soak up excess water when the river floods, as well as creating a wildlife corridor for nature.
The 60 children from Mrs Ethelston's Primary Academy planted the willow and sedge on Tuesday 23 September, along the back stretch of the Uplyme Village Green. All the children were really enthusiastic, and learnt about the issues affecting the river at this location, how to plant the willow and sedge correctly, and how the willow was propagated.
Founder and Director of Little Green Change, Clare Matheson said "We were delighted to be involved in these planting sessions as part of our Biodiversity in schools project. Getting children in the local community involved in environmental action, educating them on important issues like this, and empowering them to implement their learning to help nature is what we're about as an organisation. Thank you to all the adults and children that were involved. You did an amazing job!".
Secretary of the King George V Trustees responsible for the Uplyme playing fields, Fletcher Hulbert said "River erosion is a significant risk for us and has started to encroach on important areas of the field and we were therefore delighted to enlist the aid of the next generation of environmentalists to stabilise the bank in an ecologically-friendly manner as advised by Graham Roberts from the River Lim Action Group".
The plants will be watered, as required, during dry spells by Groundsman John Fowler, who helped during the planting sessions, until their roots have become established.