Judgement day for conservation awards

Four judges visited various sites around the Bailiwick this week to view projects that promoted nature conservation from organisations and individuals.

Michelle Arundale, the company’s HR and PR manager, was one of them.

‘It’s all about giving back to the community.

‘We had so many entries this year we had to create a shortlist,’ she said.

The list comprised of Vale Primary’s mini woodland project, Les Maingys activity centre, the pollinator project at Castel School, the Guernsey Blind Association sensory garden, Les Cotils’ woodland walk, Guernsey Trees for Life on Fort Road and the Alderney Wildlife Trust marine mammal monitoring project.

This year there will be several awards available, with the overall winner receiving £1,500. The runner-up will get £1,000.

The winner of the Peter Walpole People’s Choice Award receives £500. This is named after the founder of the awards, the company’s former chairman, and voted for by the public through the company’s website.

The Young Conservationist of the Year Award prize depends on the size and scope of the project and the Best School Award winner receives £500.

Guernsey Conservation Volunteers co-ordinator Angela Salmon, another of the judges, said more people were becoming aware of issues to do with conservation.

‘We’ve had a huge amount of different projects, incredibly diverse, it’s lovely to see. There’s more of a focus – with plastic pollution in the news, for example, people are realising the impact of our practices. We were talking with the children, who were happy showing us the trees they had planted.

‘It is a massive tick box if the projects show an awareness of native plants and wildlife,’ she said.

n The winners will be announced at a lunchtime ceremony.