One experience was a SSSI with a plant's only recorded site in GMC had work carried out on it involving heavy machinary that drove and churned a good part of the said only recorded site of this plant. It was a massacre. Lodged a complaint to ensure it did not happen again only to be told they were not aware this machinary was on the site and it was a good year any way for the plant. This is abit hard to acccept when the workers would have needed keys to access the site as it was 500metres from the nearest road. Even more worrying is if true that such work can be carried out with out those in charge knowing what was going on in their land. This was not a remote area but a public park in an urban area.
I couldn't agree more about the reasons not to carry out hedge cutting at this time of year but I feel your blanket comments about councils don't necessarily apply to all of them though Peter.
Also, I cannot help but think a letter pointing out the error of their ways to the respective council might be a decent option. Sure, they ought to know better but it's better for us to complain in the right manner initially and then if there's an unsatisfactory response we can take it further; something I'm prepared to do as County Recorder if necessary
There's a huge amount of biodiversity legislation in the UK and EU. Every council in their core strategy will have a policy to promote and protect wildlife in their borough. But as you would expect they ignore it in practice. A few intiatives photos of schooolkids planting trees in the local paper demonstrates compliance in their eyes. The rest of the time they could not care less and lay waste to biodiversity sometimes on an immense scale.
Here is mid Wales we are up in arms with the local council for hedge cutting, plus farmers ripping out gorse.
Plus the latest fad, endorsed by Countryside Council for Wales is to rip out mature hedgerow, lay double fencing, and plant new trees - well saplings between the fencing which will be of little nesting use for many years yet!
Little bit alarmed to see salford council or at least a contracter trimming back hedges around longwall school in ellenbrook today. with a lot of birds failing to breed so far this summer its just possible one or two may breed late. i know everything is over grown but one of those mechanical trimmers would wipe out a nest in seconds. Rant over.
