London Wildlife Trust held our first London 2012 Changing Places event of the year on the Greenway and Channelsea Path in Newham. Volunteers gathered last Saturday (28 February) to celebrate six months to go to the Olympic Games by helping to cut back invasive species, restore grassland, build habitat walls and clear 12 bags-worth of litter.
The event was marked by a special visit from volunteers from the Friends of the Rodwell Trail down in Dorset along with Tom Clarke from Dorset Wildlife Trust. London Wildlife Trust is working towards building a Friends of the Greenway to help take care of the Greenway in a sustainable and ecologically sensitive manner.
The Greenway and Channelsea Path are excellent green corridors for wildlife and scenic cycling and walking routes across east London that lead directly into the Olympic Park. The Chair of the Friends of the Rodwell Trail offered some great advice around creating a Friends Of group for the Greenway and has invited regular Greenway volunteers to visit Dorset. The return leg of Rodwell – Greenway twinning will likely happen in May.
Notes:
The Greenway is a 7km foot and cycle path built in the 1860s leading from Wick Lane in Bow to the Beckton Water Works by the River Thames. It will be one of a few major pedestrian routes into the Olympic Park. For more information: http://www.wildlondon.org.uk/engaging-people
Changing Places is London 2012's programme of improving local spaces around the Olympic Park. For more information: http://www.london2012.com/making-it-happen/sustainability/changing-places/
The Rodwell Trail in Weymouth, Dorset, is an old railway track that has also become a great green corridor for walkers, cyclists and wildlife that leads directly to the Olympic Sailing venue. For more information: http://www.rodwelltrail.org.uk/