Bristol's National Wildlife Conservation Park comes one step closer

Plans for an innovative and spectacular world wildlife reserve on the northern outskirts of Bristol have come one step closer.

Bristol Zoo Gardens will soon submit detailed plans to South Gloucestershire Council for the circa £70 million National Wildlife Conservation Park (NWCP) scheduled to open in 2012.

The 55-hectare Park will be the first conservation-led animal visitor attraction of its kind in the UK and will set a new benchmark for how zoos can support conservation in the wild and establish a more influential position in the global conservation movement.

The Park has been designed to link specific ecosystems and conservation programmes across the world with immersive exhibits which will be home to wild animals such as tigers, black tip sharks, bonobos (a species of chimpanzee) and brown bears.

The Park will be divided into exhibit areas which take visitors on a geographic journey to areas including the Congo Tropical Forest, Sumatra Rainforest, British Ancient Woodland and Indian Ocean Coral Reef. All the exhibits have been selected following extensive research to identify areas of high conservation need around the world.

The Park will be developed in phases, with initial 'Base Case' exhibits open when the Park launches in 2012, and additional 'Master Plan' exhibits added in phases after the initial opening date. The cost of basecase, subject to further detailed design, is around £65m - £70m, which includes estimated inflation up to the proposed opening date of 2012, and contingency

Through its design, the Park will enable visitors to get close to animals within their natural habitats and understand more about the natural world and the impact humans have on it.

Rangers and ranger stations within every exhibit area will bring a personal element to the visitor experience; rangers will act as tour guides, lead activities and help visitors make the most of their day.

In the Sumatra Rainforest exhibit (open in 2012) visitors will be able to step across a chasm caused by a seismic shift, listen to a troop of gibbons calling to each other as they swing through the trees, get close to Sumatran tigers via a transparent tiger tunnel and visit the exhibit's ranger station, built in the style of a Sumatran stilted longhouse, to find out about the Park's conservation project in Sumatra via video links.

Closer to home, the British Ancient Woodland exhibit (open in 2012) will link with UK conservation programmes led by Bristol Zoo Gardens. Here, visitors will travel back in time to see brown bears, lynx, wolves and other wildlife found in Britain hundreds of years ago, which have since been lost due to the pressures of human activity.

In addition, a Centre for British Wildlife will serve as a focus for local, regional and national native conservation organisations.

The Master Plan elements of the Park includes exhibits such as Tanzania Savannah - home to giraffe, rhino, zebra, cheetah, warthog and wild dogs - where visitors will be able to go on an off-road tour and find out about the key conservation area of Tarangire National Park in Northern Tanzania.

The Director of Bristol Zoo Gardens, Dr Jo Gipps, said the Park aims to make the children of today the conservationists of tomorrow. He said: "Submitting detailed plans to South Gloucestershire Council is an exciting and important step forward in the development of this ground breaking project."

"The Park will make a spectacular day out for visitors of all ages and interests. Stepping through the gates of the Park, visitors will be transported from the normality of the Gloucestershire countryside to an amazing world of wildlife. Visitors will feel immersed in ecosystems from all over the world, engaged in active conservation programmes and inspired to make their own real contribution to sustainable living."

The Park will offer a range of educational opportunities; from finding out about the threats facing ecosystems around the world in purpose-built classrooms within each exhibit, to facilities for University students to carry out research. It will also partner with local Universities, colleges and conservation organisations.

It will be developed and managed in a highly sustainable way, with an emphasis on low carbon emission, recycling, on-site energy generation, the use of locally-sourced materials and a green access and transport policy.

Development of the Park has been supported by the South West of England Regional Development Agency through a grant of £1.5million.