Representation by Fiona Moore
- Date submitted
- 11 June 2024
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
Crossness Nature Reserve is a rare habitat, a remainder of the marshes that once ran all along this stretch of river. It acts as a carbon store and flood defence. It is a much-loved resource for people in SE London and Cory's proposal is of huge concern. Cory want to remove 12% of the reserve. Their argument that they will compensate by making habitat enhancements to other land is false, because this land already exists for nature – the Peabody-owned Norman Road Field is already in place as mitigation for development impacts on the nearby Veridion Business Park. This area is already a haven for wildlife. At Crossness you can walk by fields where lapwings nest and skylarks sing, among a rich variety of other birds - it's a precious piece of deep countryside in SE London. The reserve is a habitat for rare water voles, a much-loved mammal declining fastest of all British mammals; for Britain's rarest bee, the Shrill Carder Bee; and for the very rare Frog Rush plant. £1m of public money was spent on the reserve from 2005-2011, including on stables which would be demolished under the plan. The horses, popular with visitors, also provide vital grazing services to keep the habitat for ground-nesting lapwings etc. There are plenty of industrial sites nearby, and Cory must be made to build its carbon capture plant on one of those. Carbon capture & storage isn't even a proven technology at scale. Cory must not be allowed to administer this devastating blow to our rare and vanishing green spaces for nature - and to the quality of life of South-East London residents.