Letter: Why is nature being ignored in push for more housing?
SIR – I read with interest your article 'Landowners urged to join homes push' (A&T, 30th December).
However, as much as I agree that we need more affordable housing, there was no mention about our depleting natural resources, encouraging more planting of new hedgerows and hard wood trees within these proposed new developments.
We are increasingly aware of new housing estates being built across the UK with very few trees or new hedgerows being planted in the gardens. This should be a strict requirement with the developers.
Our government talks a lot about net-zero and peatland restoration, but little about encouraging our late Queen's legacy of producing a Green Canopy.
Author Lucy Jones' book, Losing Eden: Why our minds need the wild, says that since lockdown it has become more evident that nature is valued for our wellbeing, with natural sounds, especially bird song, improving stress-relief and some anxieties.
Councils should 'build' on this fact rather than dismissing nature as unnecessary!
Unfortunately, we are fully aware of how our towns and villages are merging into one another, with industry, agriculture and fossil fuel-use creating huge levels of carbon dioxide, exacerbated by rising numbers of vehicles on the roads, especially with unpredictable public transport these days.
Therefore the planting of trees and hedgerows should be encouraged everywhere in order to hoover up carbon emissions, increasing fresh air, and producing a more pleasurable environment for us all.
There was widespread condemnation throughout our media, constantly seeing acres of Amazon rainforest being chopped down for cattle grazing, so why did our verderers disregard the wishes of Burley Parish Council to plant a dozen trees in the Forest to celebrate our late Queen's platinum jubilee, reducing the number to just one, in order to protect grazing?
It just doesn't make sense!
Our councils need to adopt a more naturalist attitude when builders apply for planning permission, and although some trees have been planted recently, which is commendable, there should be many more considered.
Fran Cossey,
Hordle
