Bristol has ambitious goals for ecology and wildlife in our city, but this can be challenging in urban settings. We’ve been working to bring nature and green walls to as many places as possible, and now we can share news of a project to bring pollinators to the St James Barton roundabout (AKA the Bearpit).
Our priority has been to make the Bearpit a safe place for everyone. We saw a reduction in crime and anti-social behaviour of three quarters after we took action in September 2019. We are now able to share more about the work we’re doing to wild the Bearpit, which is a continuation of the improvement works there, as well as supporting our citywide ecological strategy and aims.
This week we commenced a four-week programme to create green roofs on the former toilet blocks, turning them into wildflower meadows. The native flowers will add to the biodiversity and attract pollinators, in a space dominated by concrete and busy roads. They will have a waterproof layer, topped with a recycled stone substrate layer and then sown with a wildflower meadow seed. Once it grows, it will become a mix of colourful native wildflowers and grasses, which are low maintenance, and drought tolerant to minimise water consumption and be resilient to climate change.
We have also worked on the raised terrace planting, with the Bristol Parks team having removed the weeds as well as litter and graffiti. The timber walls are being re-stained and timber seat tops replaced with sustainable oak timbers. The existing pollinator-friendly planting along the walls has been retained and pruned. In the retained existing soil, we are adding new wildflower meadow turf and meadow seed will be sown in the spring. There will be new native trees planted, with spring-flowering bulbs planted into the meadow areas. The planted terraces are being maintained by Bristol City Council.
These elements contribute to us delivering the Ecological Emergency Action Plan goals, including the aims of ‘Meadow Bristol’, by creating new wildflower meadow habitats and our commitment to ‘Green Infrastructure’ and managing green spaces to increase biodiversity within the heart of the city.
This is round two in the fight to make the Bearpit a safe space for everyone and an area with pollinators, wildlife and colour.