Nottinghamshire Wildlife Trust has issued a news release highlighting ‘the inadequacy of wildlife legislation amid worries for wildflowers at its Wilwell Farm Cutting Nature Reserve’. The Trust claims that ‘flooding at the nature reserve caused by engineering work linked to the construction of the NET Phase 2 highlights the weakness of the wildlife legislation and the planning system’.
‘As well as being a Wildlife Trust Nature Reserve, Wilwell Farm Cutting is of national importance being designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) due to the range of wildflowers and grasses which thrive at the site. Its SSSI designation gives it legal protection from damage but, following months of flooding which could cause irreparable damage to the site’s wildlife value, the Wildlife Trust feels let down by legislation and the planning system.’
Flooding left parts of the grassland under up to 3 feet of water and concerns deepen the longer the water is allowed to sit on the site. ‘Efforts to remove the water have been under way for some time and the Wildlife Trust has been assured by Nottingham City Council that the contractor will speed up the pumping process to drain the site as quickly as possible. The Council will also be working with the Trust to establish what needs to be done to restore the site and mitigate the effects of the flooding. The situation is being monitored by Natural England – the statutory agency for protecting Sites of Special Scientific Interest.’
To find out more about Wilwell Farm Cutting and the work of the Wildlife Trust visit www.nottinghamshirewildlife.org/nature-reserves
(Photographs of the Nature Reserve and the Green Winged Orchid, one of the wildflowers under threat)