Representation by Judith Hible
- Date submitted
- 12 March 2021
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
The Swanscombe Peninsula is simply the wrong place for a theme park- we must value our precious wildlife more than we do a theme park. I am concerned that wildlife across the country is in drastic decline, and it is more important than ever to spare our national treasures Natural England have recommended Swanscombe be declared a Site of Special Scientific Interest- we must protect our most important wildlife sites from being lost. Swanscombe is a unique open mosaic of coastal habitats, grasslands, scrub and wetlands that have developed as a result of the site’s complex human history. The Swanscombe Peninsula is an exceptional and exemplar site in a unique location within the ecological context of the Thames Estuary. Swanscombe has been shown to meet SSSI selection criteria, with regards to typicalness, fragility, size, diversity, ecological coherence, and the rarity of both species and habitats supported. OMHPDL (Open Mosaic Habitats on Previously developed Land) habitats have suffered from significant losses in the Thames Estuary, despite supporting a nationally important invertebrate assemblage, with 51% of key brownfield sites lost, damaged or under threat from an existing permission between 2007 and 2013, and potential losses continuing with Tilbury 2, the redevelopment of Arena Essex and proposed Swanscombe Peninsula developments. It supports over 250 invertebrate species of conservation concern, including the Critically Endangered Distinguished jumping spider (Attulus distinguendus), which is found on only one other site in the UK. Swanscombe is home to nationally rare and endangered bees, spiders, beetles, wasps and a host of other invertebrates that make the site of national importance. Its rich breeding bird assemblage includes 15 red-listed Birds of Conservation Concern and 12 Species of Principal Importance- including Marsh harriers, Bearded tit, Nightingales and Black redstart. 13 nationally scarce vascular plant species have been found at Swanscombe, including 5 red-listed species such as the Man orchid. It also has locally important populations of reptiles, bats, Water vole and Otter. The State of Nature 2019 found : Of the 7,615 species found in England that have been assessed using the IUCN Regional Red List criteria, and for which sufficient data were available, 971 (13%) are currently threatened with extinction from Great Britain (England-specific assessments are not available). England still contains a range of internationally important habitats, such as its lowland heathlands, ancient woodlands and chalk grasslands in the south, the blanket bogs along the Pennines, and the coastal estuaries and saltmarshes, while sea cliffs and offshore islands support internationally important numbers of breeding seabirds.