Representation by Ivan Gosling
- Date submitted
- 11 January 2019
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
Irreparable damage to the WHS, its archaeology and setting, described by UNESCO as a ‘landscape without parallel’ leading to the possible loss of its WHS status.
UNESCO’s international advisers say the scheme should not go ahead in its present form because of concerns about damage to Blick Mead Mesolithic site and its setting. Speaking to local archaeologists, they are very concerned about the damage to Blick Mead due to changes in the water table.
From Ancient-origins.com...
[REDACTED]told reporters at The BBC , “This is a travesty. We took great care to excavate this platform and the auroch's hoofprints. If the tunnel goes ahead the water table will drop and all the organic remains will be destroyed. If the remains aren't preserved we may never be able to understand why Stonehenge was built.”
What is more, in February the professor accused the government and Highways England of “negligence or worse, for a map of the plans which he said put Blick Mead in the wrong place.”
[REDACTED]biggest concern is that because the aurochs’ prints uncovered during the last excavation were found in a “high state of preservation,” beneath a stone surface, he believes “their conservation was deliberate” and that “human footprints might also be discovered” at the ancient settlement site, which evidence suggests was used especially for feasting. He also believes a “cattle cult” operated on Salisbury Plain some 6,000 years ago and a “30ft long flint surface was built over the prints, which suggested they were “deliberately preserved.” alternative options in consultation that would not damage the World Heritage Site
Loss of the view from the road and need to pay to see the Stones in future. This is wrong because the stones were gifted to the nation. Even if there is a charge for entry, the stones should at least be visible free of charge.
Disturbance of rare bird species (Stone Curlew and Great Bustard).
Increased noise from faster traffic. The sound of the traffic on the A303 is quite audible at night from my home, increased traffic speed would certainly make it worse.