Wildlife charity Buglife has expressed disappointment that plans to infill a former quarry, which has been reclaimed by nature, are being recommended for approval.
Buckingham Hill Pit in Thurrock, is designated as a Local Wildlife Site and has long been recognised as being a nature hotspot in South Essex. Its history of sand extraction has left flower-rich grassland terraces and vertical sand faces, sparsely vegetated sandy slopes, seasonally wet areas and pockets of scrub. Once used to produce sand for the construction of the M25, quarrying stopped in the 1990s and it has become home to hundreds of species of invertebrate, including rare and threatened species such as the Shrill Carder Bee (Bombus sylvarum), Brown-banded Carder Bee (Bombus humilis) and Five-banded Weevil Wasp (Cerceris quinquefasciata). Surveys undertaken by Buglife and supported by Natural England in 2007 confirmed it to be home to nationally important populations of invertebrates, and it has since been included in the Thames Estuary North Important Invertebrate Areas.
However, after a long delay, proposals submitted in 2019 that would see the Local Wildlife Site infilled with imported material and sand quarrying resume on land to the south of the quarry have now been recommended for approval and will be considered by Thurrock’s Planning Committee imminently on Tuesday 10 February. Buglife has previously expressed concern that its invertebrate interest has not been properly recognised and that the plans for an ecology park are not nearly enough to make up for the loss of such an important wildlife site.
Jamie Robins, Buglife Programmes Manager, says, “Buckingham Hill Pit is a unique haven for nature in Thurrock and it would be devastating to see yet another precious habitat lost in the Thames Estuary. We have seen so many important wildlife sites lost in Thurrock and there are fears that we are reaching a tipping point where species simply cannot recover. We urge Thurrock Council to reject this application.”
“Against the background of a nature emergency, with our insects in steep decline, it is more important than ever to protect our most important wildlife sites. If we are to meet the ambitions of the Essex Local Nature Recovery Strategy, we need to protect Local Wildlife Sites such as Buckingham Hill Pit”
If Thurrock’s Planning Committee decide to follow the recommendation for approval, it would be another blow to nature in Thurrock, which is home to nationally important populations of invertebrates. Several Local Wildlife Sites have been destroyed or are earmarked for destruction from approvals in recent years for the high-profile Lower Thames Crossing and the Tilbury 2 port expansion. Meanwhile, Thurrock Council is currently considering proposals for the Thurrock Data Centre on the Arena Essex Local Wildlife Site and for the further expansion of the Port of Tilbury for Tilbury 3 across an important brownfield Local Wildlife Site network.
Buglife has previously raised concerns about the continued losses of wildlife-rich brownfield habitat, referred to as open mosaic habitat on previously developed land. Previous studies showed that over half of wildlife-rich brownfield sites in the Thames Estuary identified between 2005 and 2007 were either lost or subject to planning permission in just a six-year period. Since then, pressure on wildlife-rich brownfields have only intensified, with Buglife leading campaigns to save some of the best sites before it is too late.
The application is expected to be considered on Tuesday 10 February, with approval recommended despite objections from a range of other organisations, including the RSPB, Essex Field Club and Essex Badger Protection Group, alongside over 1,100 local objections covering a range of topics.
Main Thumbnail Image Credit: Buckingham Hill Pit © Jamie Robins