Durham Wildlife Trust has teamed up with local authorities throughout the region to help raise public awareness of the threats facing the endangered water vole.

And as part of its campaign an interpretation panel was unveiled yesterday at Wapping Burn, Shotton Colliery in east Durham. Other panels will later be installed in Darlington, Sunderland, Gateshead and South Tyneside.

The North and East Durham Strategic Water Vole Recovery Project is being funded by the "Your Heritage'' lottery fund and is the first scheme of its kind to be funded this way.

Work at the Wapping Burn section of the project is now well underway and is being aided by workers at two east Durham companies whose bases are located along the vital water vole waterway.

At NSK Bearings located on Peterlee's South West Industrial Estate and at the npower offices at Bracken Hill Industrial Estate at Shotton Colliery employees have already been helping to improve the environment around their places of work to help improve conditions for the water voles.

Representatives from both companies were present at the official launch of the interpretation panel, which gives information on the water vole and what can be done to help protect the charismatic creature before it becomes extinct in the North East.

As well as habitat restoration and creation in urban areas, the project is also working woth DEFRA's Rural Development Service to engage the farming community in work to protect the vole, by targeting spending under the new Environmental Stewardship Scheme which is due to be launched in the Spring.

Anyone wanting any further information on the project should contact the North and East Durham Strategic Water Vole Recovery Project on 0191 5843112.