Clearance of Wild Park 'scrub' under fire

2:51pm Tuesday 16th October 2012 in News By Ben James

A council has been criticised of “wanton destruction” of woodland after releasing plans for a city park.

Brighton and Hove Council is preparing to clear areas of Wild Park to make land for sheep to graze. The first stage will see workers move in this autumn to clear areas of scrub.

However, the plans have been met with anger with one resident calling on the council to re-think the proposals. James Parrott said he was shocked to see notices of the proposals when walking in the park.

In a letter to his local councillors, he said: “Your justification for this destruction and enclosure is the return of the park to ‘semi-natural grassland’ by removing large areas of ‘scrubland’.

“How can this woodland be described as scrubland?

“Since the end of the Second World War, Wild Park has gradually turned back to its natural habitat of first shrub and now woodland.

“Brighton and Hove Council should be proud that they have created an area of woodland.”

As a consequence of creating the grazing areas, more of the park will be fenced off for the likes of dog walkers, cyclists and children.

Mr Parrott added: “These woodland areas provide much needed protection for small birds and mammals. It is also a beautiful place for walkers and children to play.

“They want to destroy this woodland and will compound this destruction by enclosing this common land for sheep grazing which will restrict use by all.

“Brighton and Hove is not a large city. It is surrounded by grazing land and has very few natural woods. Why do they want to destroy this one?”

The council said that scrubland had taken over the park and that the work was necessary. The initial work is part of a ten-year plan which began this spring.

It comes following a local consultation in which the council said its “management principles” were supported by 69% of respondents.

Click here to see the detailed plans.

Comments(14)

Jimmy Stewart's Imaginary Rabbit says...
3:00pm Tue 16 Oct 12

Not again! What is this obsession with mucking around with Wild Park? They say "well it used to have sheep on it"; so did my road, but no ones suggesting we knock down all the houses and turn it back into grassland.

The Parks Department still has too much money. Where's that budget simulator gone? I want to implement some more cuts ...

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Jimmy Stewart's Imaginary Rabbit says...
3:01pm Tue 16 Oct 12

PS - And despite being a regular user of Wild Park I didn't see any consultation document.

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Notters_Seagull says...
3:11pm Tue 16 Oct 12

Nimby in not knowing about science shocker.

A number of rare species thrive on downland grassland, which has become a rare habitat due to intensive farming. By clearing scrub and linking areas of grassland, species such as the Downland Blue butterfly and various orchids are offered a chance of survival. Afforestation is the national norm but there are other rare and diverse habitats that need protecting.

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Crystal Ball says...
3:30pm Tue 16 Oct 12

It's a great location for a dry ski slope...

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Vigilia says...
3:32pm Tue 16 Oct 12

That 69% wouldn't be travellers by any chance? They seem to be major stakeholders in the City these days.

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Hove Actually says...
3:38pm Tue 16 Oct 12

You could NEVER accuse this council of being Green............

A bigger bunch of urban Terrorists would be hard to find

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Jimmy Stewart's Imaginary Rabbit says...
4:20pm Tue 16 Oct 12

Notters_Seagull wrote:
Nimby in not knowing about science shocker.

A number of rare species thrive on downland grassland, which has become a rare habitat due to intensive farming. By clearing scrub and linking areas of grassland, species such as the Downland Blue butterfly and various orchids are offered a chance of survival. Afforestation is the national norm but there are other rare and diverse habitats that need protecting.
I hope that comment wasn't aimed at me. I never said there wasn't a need for open grassland, just that Wild Park isn't the place for it - unless you want thousands of people stomping all over the orchids.

"Metropolitan bigot not understanding local needs shocker"

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fredflintstone1 says...
5:17pm Tue 16 Oct 12

Ah - the council’s 69% figure! What they don’t tell you is that this is based on an overall sample size of 59 people, 33 of whom, including I believe Coun. Pete West and others who had been vocal in calling for the clearance, supported the principles. But let’s be clear - there has been no consultation about their actual management PLANS anyway, just management PRINCIPLES, as the council admit.

The council also conveniently overlook the fact that around 1800 people have already signed a petition opposed both to the works and permanent fencing to create sheep paddocks in a public park. Fencing will extend down the entire side of the valley where the shrine to the little girls who were murdered there is present. There will also be other areas fenced off.

The bill for this latest planned work in Wild Park? On the council’s own figures, it comes out at a staggering £122,198.33, excluding grass cutting.

Since the council cut down the first tranche of woodland a couple of years ago, which included many oak trees, not one of their beloved Adonis blue butterflies has been recorded there in either 2011 or 2012.

Also, based on the survey that the council carried out, they’ve just discovered 94 new species in the area that they now intend to clear - none of which had been recorded in Wild Park before!

So exactly how will this improve biodiversity? Removing the habitat of species that you’ve just discovered in an area? Seems rather like they do in the Amazon rainforest, where the vegetation is cut down to graze cattle, but in this case it's sheep.

It doesn't really seem compatible with the council's desire to win biosphere status for the city. But they seem ruthlessly intent on pursuing an policy of ethnic cleansing in Wild Park, in favour of sheep and Adonis blue butterflies.

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george smith says...
5:30pm Tue 16 Oct 12

This is a real eye opener in terms of local politics, they couldn't give a monkeys about the people that use the park every day. This is more about people having their noses well and truly in the funding trough.
it appears to have been the brain child of people with very little relevant knowledge, their knowledge being irrelevant such as hamster reproduction or the university of life. They talk in those very annoying hushed tones, pretending to know more than they do.
At the findon sheep fair this year there were men standing with hand disinfectant and foot disinfectant baths to walk through. The Wild Park sheep, there is nothing. It didn't have sheep as a farm it farmed rabbits when it was a proper farm, the fruit canes are still there. It was given to the people for recreational use, not to get funding that is really meant for farmers not recreational parks. Before thes felled the first lot of trees there were bats. If this local politics it sucks.

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redwing says...
9:34am Wed 17 Oct 12

You've got to go back a bit further, george. The scrubland and woodland of Wild Park is a very recent change. The grassland habitat existed for centuries and supports species of flowers, grasses and insects, which are threatened by loss of habitat. These are not things that you can establish elsewhere, as you can areas of woodland. The council have endeavoured to explain what they are doing, and why, and take people's view into account, but it's hard for some to accept because they've got used to the bushes and trees. The council has a wider responsibility than just giving "a monkeys about the people that use the park everyday". They've done their best on this (for once), but are then slammed on here for the cost of their efforts of course.

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Jimmy Stewart's Imaginary Rabbit says...
6:23pm Wed 17 Oct 12

redwing wrote:
You've got to go back a bit further, george. The scrubland and woodland of Wild Park is a very recent change. The grassland habitat existed for centuries and supports species of flowers, grasses and insects, which are threatened by loss of habitat. These are not things that you can establish elsewhere, as you can areas of woodland. The council have endeavoured to explain what they are doing, and why, and take people's view into account, but it's hard for some to accept because they've got used to the bushes and trees. The council has a wider responsibility than just giving "a monkeys about the people that use the park everyday". They've done their best on this (for once), but are then slammed on here for the cost of their efforts of course.
You didn't read FredFlintstone's post did you? Or if you did you simply ignored it. There is NO justification for this under any reasonable criteria whatsoever.

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LaVizz says...
10:37pm Wed 17 Oct 12

I am in total agreement with James Parrot, I am not convinced by the Council propaganda "Ancient Chalk Grassland" is a manmade environment, good for certain Insects, Flowers and Sheep, to be truly ancient, surely it should be left to Nature, within reason ? I have recently become aware that they also plan to do the same to large areas of Whitehawk Hill, that are currently home to many small Birds and Mice and Lizards that nest in the Bramble, Shrubs and Trees, there will also be many Foxes and Badgers made Homeless, it is also always buzzing with Butterflies and Bees, maybe Adonis Blue Butterflies and certain Orchids are rare, because they're meant to be rare ? I certainly do not believe that they are so important that they warrant all the distruction of existing biodiversities !

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bumble88 says...
11:22pm Thu 18 Oct 12

The Council have not bothered with Wild Park for years, it is their own fault they have not managed it.
So they are clearing trees and valuable scrub to turn it back into chalk grassland.
What's wrong with the grass chalkland adjacent to it, after all it is in the National Park? It maybe an ex crop field but it has been years since it has been used.The flowers don't seem to mind, and it is well used by butterflies.
Already has quite a lot of wild flowers including Blue fleabane, Common Centaury, Knapweed, Harebells, And Orchid. With a bit of t.l.c it would thrive.
Not fencing though please.

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ramble says...
8:29am Fri 19 Oct 12

To be fair the council did send out two newsletters to 15,000 homes regarding their proposals at Wild Park.

The first newsletter was sent in October 2010. It stated in this" All necessary approvals were obtained"
At the time of sending this out the council knew they were being investigated by the Forestry Commission, for not having a Felling licence for the felling of 229 Oak trees, The Forestry commission decided they should have had a felling licence , calling it deforestation. so they did not have their approval.

In the second newsletter sent out in March 2011 the map on this newsletter showed the areas that have been cleared miraculously intact with trees again, giving an inaccurate and highly misleading representation to those unfamiliar with what had already been cleared..
The map was also extremely faint, so faint that you would be excused for thinking this was part of cut backs. The public can only make a judgement on the information they are given and neither of these newsletters were entirely correct.

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