Safety is our number one priority at SSE, even for the humble snail.
Southern Electric Power Distribution (SEPD) engineers set up special buffer zones to safeguard the protected Roman snail during work to dismantle overhead lines in the picturesque Cotswolds.
The £120,000 project has seen 1.5km of overhead lines, near Chedworth’s Roman villa, buried underground, offering a clearer view across the Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
Twenty four spans of overhead power cable and 22 wooden poles have been taken down stretching from Yarnworth to Chedworth Woods.
During the process SEPD had an ecologist on site and worked closely with local teams to ensure the Helix pomatia snail colonies, the largest snails in the UK, were protected throughout.
A survey was carried out by environmental consultants ADAS to identify the key areas, allowing the SEPD team to carefully bury replacement underground cables in the surrounding fields. Once the cables were powered up, engineers were then able to dismantle the overhead lines.
Greg Moore, SEPD Project Manager, said: “This is a beautiful part of the Cotswolds with fantastic views across rolling countryside. Fields along this valley were crossed by the overhead power lines, and now we’ve removed them, it looks a lot more in keeping with the surroundings. Our team was definitely on the snail trail while we worked but our buffer zone seemed to work well as we saw no evidence of the mighty molluscs.”
Chedworth Roman Villa, owned by the National Trust, boasts the ruins of one of the largest Romano-British villas in the country and includes some of the most impressive in-situ Roman mosaics.
Martin Lane, Director at the Cotswolds Conservation Board, said: “The Conservation Board is very pleased to have worked with SEPD to improve the appearance of this beautiful part of the Cotswolds landscape. We are involved with a number of similar schemes in the Cotswolds, all of which will make a significant contribution to enhancing the natural beauty of the area.”
The project was funded by a special allowance, granted to SEPD by industry regulator Ofgem, to invest in projects to put underground power lines in AONBs and National Parks in central southern England.