A leading geologist and a bird identification expert were honoured at the HNHS Autumn Meeting on Saturday 18 October as the Society continued celebrations marking its 150th anniversary.

Haydon Bailey, a national authority on chalk strata and fossils, received the Trevor James Award for an outstanding Hertfordshire natural historian. Haydon is Chair of Hertfordshire Geological Society which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year.

Photo of Dr Bailey receiving his award from the High Sheriff, Nicholas Buxton (© David Utting)

Join us at the Autumn Meeting and AGM on Saturday 18 October to celebrate our 150th anniversary!

The conference is taking place from 2pm to 5.30pm at the offices of Affinity Water, Tamblin Way, Hatfield AL10 9EZ.

The programme includes a chance to learn more about the Society’s Victorian founders and their rather different approaches to studying natural history. And there will be a special guest, Hertfordshire’s High Sheriff Nicholas Buxton, who will present the HNHS annual awards and talk about his approach to wildlife conservation on the Easneye Estate, near Ware.

After a long period of uncertainty, a revised planning application for the Hillingdon Water Sports and Activity Centre (HWSAC) at Broadwater Lake is awaited later in August. 

Our colleagues at Herts & Middlesex Wildlife Trust understand the proposals have changed significantly since it launched a major campaign to protect the Lake's important Site of Special Scientific Interest from harm.  Although located just outside Hertfordshire, the lake is part of the nationally important Colne Valley wetland system.