Representation by Chris Rose
- Date submitted
- 30 March 2021
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
There is a widely acknowledged biodiversity crisis, both nationally and globally, with report after report (such as the successive State of Nature reports e.g. 2019) showing serious declines in both rare and many commoner species. This will not be tackled, nor will the government's supposed concern for biodiversity, be credible if we as a country allow building on even our best wildlife sites such as SSSIs. I agree with the Lawton Review (2010) that, inter alia, called for bigger and better joined up nature sites to help reverse biodiversity declines. As far as I am concerned, Swanscombe Marses is an important stepping stone in the massively depleted chain of Thames-side marsland sites in the inner estuary, including Rainham, Dartford and both Crayford and Erith marshes, the latter two of which I have helped fight to try and protect from planning attacks. All this habitat should be retained and improved. I do not accept the de facto policy of government that the way to increase wildlife is to cram it into ever less space. The proposed theme park will destroy much of the SSSI area, and the artist's impressions show the usual sanitised landscaping (and way too much lifeless hard surfacing) which the applicant would have us believe is adequate 'mitigation'. It has claimed that the scheme will be operationally carbon neutral, but what about the massive carbon, metal and concrete costs of construction? I twill also drive a wholly unnecessary increase in transportation carbon costs from visitors. That such a massively damaging scheme is deemed 'nationally significant' in any kind of 'positive' way is disturbing. The only up side to this is that the local Council, if anything like mine, would be more likely to roll over and vote for it. Please reject this application.