Representation by Mark Bavin
- Date submitted
- 21 February 2023
- Submitted by
- Members of the public/businesses
I wish to make a representation with particular regard to the excessive amount of land take for environmental impact and compensation purposes in respect of this project. With each successive public consultation, the amount of land required for this purpose has increased, partly driven by nitrogen deposition and other pollutant data but also to provide swathes of formerly, privately owned land, for open green spaces accessible by local communities, no doubt, to placate and minimise local opposition to the project. This specific type of land acquisition is nationalisation of private property by another name, the scale of which, sets a dangerous precedent. My particular concern is in the amount of land appropriation that appears to be far in excess of the trees and habitat being affected by the construction project itself on the south side of the river Thames in the Gravesham and Blue Bell Hill areas. I cannot see how nitrogen levels and other pollutants will be very different to what they are now and indeed, may improve with better traffic flows, and over time, with increasing use of electric vehicles and clean technologies. The relief of traffic flows, and their associated pollutants, at the existing Dartford crossing point as a result of this new crossing, should also be considered. In time, the need for environmental mitigation may, in large part, prove to be temporary, but the loss of private land to their current owners will be permanent. I respectfully request, therefore, that the justification for the compulsory purchase of large tracts of privately owned land, extraneous to the actual construction of the project, is closely scrutinised by the examiners and constrained to the absolute minimum necessary.