NATURE PARK VS MUNICIPAL PARK

Close to my home there is a small and rather lovely park, a river runs through it providing a home for moor hens, coots, ducks, kingfishers and numerous other species. Ancient ivy covered wall shelter this sweet little spot and many trees of great girth and considerable age grace the river banks.
Upon the wall there is a sign board which carries the legend “ Nature Park” and there as they say is the rub! Due to the overzealous attentions of our Council’s Contractors the nature park is rapidly being reduced to a municipal park. Ivy has been stripped from the walls and undergrowth ripped out, trees have been felled and every effort is being made to tidy the wild life in the park out of existence.

During the past few days so mush ivy has been removed that nest boxes placed in the park have been exposed, including an owl box. Such activity at this sensitive time of year has rendered these nesting sites useless to the birds which have been using them for years. Ivy which provides nest sites for wrens, and numerous other species and with is vital to butterflies and moths has been stripped back so ruthlessly that the damage to these creatures is incalculable.

London’s butterfly population has decreased by 80% during the last ten years and it is this type of insensitive maintenance which is largely to blame.

Our local Council asserts that they can exercise little control over the way in which the contractors carry out their work. Unbelievable as this may seem once Laings. have targeted a particular area experience has shown they are almost impossible to stop.

Almost, but not entirely. Over a two year period our group halted the destruction of wild life in an old graveyard near my . I will not say that it was easy but it showed that a determined group of people could, if they made enough noise, put a stop to the mindless destruction of our few remaining wild places.

While I am sure that we are all aware of the need for health and safety measures, many of these steps are being taken to simply make the areas easier to maintain in the future which will, of course reduce their costs and increase their profits and this must cease!

One final thing – it is against the law to disturb a nesting bird; if you see someone doing it – including anyone wearing official clothes – please contact the RSPB at once, taking photographs if possible.

Thanks,
Avie