Leading figures in UK nature conservation gathered at The Royal Society, London this week to celebrate the essential role quarrying plays in nature recovery and biodiversity gain.

Quarries & Nature 2025, hosted by the Mineral Products Association (MPA), saw awards presented to the best current examples of wildlife habitat creation through the sensitive operation, management and restoration of mineral extraction sites.

Among those speaking and presenting awards were Chair of Natural England Tony Juniper CBE, RSPB Chief Executive Beccy Speight and Director of Landscape Recovery at The Wildlife Trusts, Rob Stoneman.  More than 200 representatives from MPA members, planning authorities and numerous conservation groups attended the event, compered by broadcast journalist Sybil Ruscoe, who has a long association with the countryside and rural affairs.

Tony Juniper CBE said: “Some of these restoration schemes are really quite mind-blowing, delivering nature recovery at scale, at the same time as producing the resources we need to build homes and infrastructure, developing landscapes that support climate resilience, while also creating fantastic places for families to get close to wildlife.

“All of this presents a massive opportunity for a country that has much work to do to meet challenging environmental goals. With better strategic planning, more joined-up thinking and with all stakeholders on board, the mineral products industry could be a famous vanguard in building a truly sustainable society.”

Beccy Speight said: "We’re facing significant declines in biodiversity and it’s crucial we work together to stop and reverse this. The mineral industry really is leading the way, showing how biodiversity can be embraced, and that growth for business and nature can be achieved hand in hand. This award for RSPB Langford Lowfields highlights the power of partnerships and how working together for a common cause can create wonderful places for wildlife and people. We’ve just seen another record-breaking year for Bittern numbers, and quarry restorations have been a big part of this success story, enabling us to create major wetland habitats that support a range of species.”

Now in their 54^th year, the independently-judged awards have seen hundreds of former quarries transformed into new areas for wildlife. Indeed, many of the UK’s most treasured nature reserves and country parks have been created through quarrying, and MPA members continue to bring to fruition new areas of habitat that support some of the UK’s rarest and most endangered species.

Lex Russell, MPA Chair, said: “The mineral products industry is unrivalled by any other when it comes to a combination of expertise and on-the-ground delivery for nature. Working with partner organisations, MPA members have a proven track record when it comes to increasing biodiversity through quarry restoration and land management.

“This year's Quarries & Nature awards provide more evidence of the extensive legacy the industry has built over decades. There has never been a more important moment to recognise the essential role of domestic raw materials in the economy and our society, alongside the long-term contribution the industry makes to nature. While others talk about potential, minerals producers have actually been delivering positive outcomes and we are committed to doing so going forward.”

The 2025 awards saw almost 40 entries from across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland in the main Restoration award and four Biodiversity award categories of Innovation, Landscape Scale, Planned Restoration, and Individual & Group Contribution.

Winners of the coveted Cooper-Heyman Cup for outstanding achievement in quarry restoration were Tarmac and RSPB at Langford Quarry near Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire. The partnership has transformed an area of 122 hectares of the former sand and gravel quarry into a mosaic of wetlands, lowland meadows, wet woodland and agriculture.

The judges said that “this highly impressive site is a key component of the wider landscape-scale restoration works being undertaken along the Trent by the minerals sector” and there was a “high level of expertise shown in the design and delivery in partnership with the RSPB”.

Highly commended in the restoration category were Heidelberg with Smiths Concrete and Warwickshire Wildlife Trust for Bubbenhall Wood and Meadows Nature Reserve; and in Oxfordshire Smith & Sons (Bletchington) with Linear Fisheries (Oxford) were highly commended for Tar Farm Lakes.

In the Biodiversity - Innovation category, which recognises imaginative approaches that advance best practices, the winners were Tarmac with Cranfield University for measuring and integrating biodiversity net gain and carbon sequestration into restoration at Maxey Quarry in Cambridgeshire and Wivenhoe Quarry in Essex. Runners up in the Innovation category were Cemex for the conservation grazing using a ‘virtual fence’ at Rugeley Quarry near Cannock Chase, Staffordshire.

Staffordshire restoration schemes were also joint winners of the Biodiversity - Landscape Scale category, which celebrates projects that connect with their surroundings to deliver on the Lawton principles of ‘Making Space for Nature’[1] — more, bigger, better and joined areas of nature conservation.  Holcim at Cauldon Cement Quarry and Caldon Low Aggregate Quarry shared the prize with Heidelberg at Barton Quarry. Highly commended in the Landscape Scale category were Tarmac for Arcow and Dry Rigg Quarries in North Yorkshire and Holcim for Little Paxton Quarry in Cambridgeshire.

Winner of the Biodiversity – Planned Restoration category, highlighting schemes that are approved but yet to be delivered, and will deliver biodiversity benefits in future, was Heidelberg for restoration at Birch Quarry in Essex, with Tarmac highly commended for their work at Wivenhoe Quarry, also in Essex.

Finally, five people received awards for their personal dedication and contribution to enhancing biodiversity at restored quarries, along with awards for a quarry team and a volunteer group that have gone above and beyond, and the 15-year conservation partnership between Cemex and the RSPB.

Mark Russell, MPA Executive Director of Planning & Mineral Resources, said: “We are delighted that our achievements continue to be recognised by the UK’s leading conservation bodies with whom we have longstanding partnerships. Unfortunately the Government consistently fails to appreciate how our industry is uniquely placed to directly help convert aspirations for nature recovery and biodiversity into leadership and action on the ground. We hope that this year's Quarries & Nature event triggers wider recognition and debate. Besides providing essential, domestically sourced materials, we are one of the few industries that has demonstrated time and again it can deliver tangible solutions to the UK’s nature recovery challenges, and we are ready to work with all stakeholders to protect and enhance biodiversity."

“The minerals industry has a long and proven track record of delivering new areas for wildlife through the responsible management, restoration and aftercare of quarries. In partnership with the leading conservation bodies, our sector has already created more than 90 square kilometres of priority habitat with a further 110 square kilometres already planned and committed.”

MPA QUARRIES & NATURE AWARD WINNERS AND COMMENDATIONS

Ends.

Photo captions

	Langford Quarry near Newark-on-Trent, Nottinghamshire was the winner of the coveted Cooper-Heyman Cup for outstanding achievement in quarry restoration. The partnership between Tarmac and RSPB has transformed an area of 122 hectares of the former sand and gravel quarry into a mosaic of wetlands, lowland meadows, wet woodland and agriculture.
	Chair of Natural England Tony Juniper CBE said: Some of these restoration schemes are really quite mind-blowing, delivering nature recovery at scale, at the same time as producing the resources we need to build homes and infrastructure, developing landscapes that support climate resilience, while also creating fantastic places for families to get close to wildlife.”
	RSPB Chief Executive Beccy Speight said: “We’ve seen some fantastic restoration work at Quarries & Nature, and I applaud mineral products for being an industry that has the ambition and is getting on with it, proving it can deliver economic growth and nature recovery at the same time.
	More than 200 representatives from MPA members, planning authorities and numerous conservation groups attended the event.

Further information
For more details about specific sites, including photos and judges’ comments, contact Robert McIlveen: Robert.McIlveen@mineralproducts.org.

About the Mineral Products Association:
The Mineral Products Association (MPA) is the trade association for the aggregates, asphalt, cement, concrete, dimension stone, lime, mortar and industrial sand industries. MPA is the sectoral voice for mineral products, covering 100% of UK cement and lime production, 90% of GB aggregates production, 95% of asphalt and over 60% of ready-mixed concrete and precast concrete production. In 2021, the industry supplied £22 billion worth of materials and services to the Economy. It is also the largest supplier to the construction industry, which had annual output valued at £178 billion. Industry production represents the largest flow of materials in the UK economy and is also one of the largest manufacturing sectors.