<p><span style="color: #1c1c1c; font-family: arial, helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: 20px;"> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; line-height: 18px; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;"><strong>You might think that with our wonderful volunteers we've got no need for machinery - but it's just not so!</strong></p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; line-height: 18px; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">A tractor would; free up person-power to let them spend time on the more inaccessible, sensitive areas of our nature reserves, reduce our dependence on contractors, allow us to carry out tasks such as fencing and hedge flailing and much more.</p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; line-height: 18px; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">We know that acquiring a tractor would transform the way we work on our reserves.</p> <p style="margin-top: 0px; margin-right: 0px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-left: 0px; outline-width: 0px; outline-style: initial; outline-color: initial; font-size: 13px; vertical-align: baseline; background-image: initial; background-attachment: initial; background-origin: initial; background-clip: initial; background-color: transparent; line-height: 18px; background-position: initial initial; background-repeat: initial initial; padding: 0px; border: 0px initial initial;">At present, we simply do not have the funds to purchase a tractor, which would cost in the region of &pound;50,000 for a basic machine with attachments. We're looking for sponsorship opportunities too, but in the current economic climate this is becoming more difficult, and we'd like to establish a fund we could ask sponsors to 'match'.</p> </span></p>