Documents that saved a Lancashire beauty spot recognised internationally for its geology have finally been added to local historical records.

The original draft copy for the Salthill Quarry Geological Trail were handed over to the Mayor of Clitheroe Simon O’Rourke at a ceremony at the local nature reserve.

Without the documents, and the work that went into producing them by the Nature Conservancy Council, millions of years of Lancashire’s history would have been lost under an access road to an industrial estate.

Geologists Robin Grayson, Barry Roberts and Dr Christine Arkwright handed over the documents to be passed onto Clitheroe’s archives by the Mayor, who was attended by his father Michael.

Robin said: “The original draft documents for the Salthill Quarry Geology Trail which the Nature Conservancy Council published in 1979, as a matter of urgency, helped to ensure the survival of the Geological Site of Special Scientific Interest.

At the time, there was active refuse tipping by the town at one end of the quarry, blasting at the other end of the quarry and construction of the access road about to commence!”

Salthill Quarry once lay at the bottom of the ocean and features a mud mound and fossils of 350-million-year-old animals, crinoids, which live in tropical seas.

These features are recognised as being vitally important by geologists worldwide.

And the Mayor had his own insights into the area, having worked on the Salthill Industrial Estate, which is surrounded by the nature reserve. He said the documents would ensure the natural and geological parts of the area would be protected from future development.

He added: “Hopefully this will bring more people to see this really important and fascinating nature reserve.”

Kim Coverdale, who is Lancashire Wildlife Trust’s reserve manager for Salthill Quarry, which was designated a Local Nature Reserve in 1989, was also on hand to describe some of its natural features. Kim and her team are ensuring that Salthill is renowned for its amazing plants and insects today, as well as the prehistoric crinoids that used to swim on the reserve.

The presentation took place at the Crinoid Seat, which was created by artists Fiona Bewley and Jon Fenton.

The Salthill Quarry Geology Trail documents will be available to peruse through Clitheroe Town Council and Clitheroe Civic Society.

The Wildlife Trust for Lancashire, Manchester and North Merseyside is dedicated to the protection and promotion of the wildlife in Lancashire, seven boroughs of Greater Manchester and four of

Merseyside, all lying north of the River Mersey. It manages around 40 nature reserves and 20 Local Nature Reserves covering acres of woodland, wetland, upland and meadow. The Trust has 30,000 members, and over 1,200 volunteers.