Category Archives: SINC

Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation report ‘in the long grass’ for over a year – is Bexley taking biodiversity seriously?

Having recently been subject to considerable criticism over its vegetation management on sensitive wildlife sites, we would normally welcome Bexley Council’s apparent enthusiasm for some long grass, but not when it is (metaphorically) being used as a repository for the … Continue reading

Posted in Bexley Council, BNEF, Budget, Danson Park, Erith Quarry, Land sales, London Wildlife Trust, Open spaces, Planning, SINC | Leave a comment

Council open space sell-off list in full, and campaigner’s current position

Bexley Council has now made public the list of 27 pieces of land it is contemplating selling off (appended below), 10 of which are classed as ‘Open spaces’ and 17 ‘Highways land’. We have yet to see the ‘voting’ figures … Continue reading

Posted in Bexley Council, Consultations, Environment, Housing targets, Land sales, Open spaces, Parks, Planning, SINC | 1 Comment

Residents revolt over Council ‘carnage’ on banks of Wyncham Stream. New row as Council describes heavy-handed management of Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation as ‘tree maintenance’.

Bexley Council is once again under scrutiny for an apparently budget-driven ‘scorched earth’ approach to vegetation management. Complaints from residents about the severity of an operation last week along the Wyncham stream, a tributary of the Shuttle, where it flows between Brookend … Continue reading

Posted in Bexley Council, Biodiversity Action Plan, BNEF, coppicing, Environment, Friends of the Shuttle, Parks, River Shuttle, Rivers, RSPB, SINC, Trees, vegetation management, Volunteering, Wyncham Stream | 4 Comments

Latest outbreak of excessive ‘vegetation management’ sparks ‘Key habitat features’ list move

Several complaints about  a ‘scorched earth’ approach to vegetation management along the River Shuttle over the past couple of weeks, have been relayed to noted local bird recorder Ralph Todd of Bexley RSPB, and further dismay was expressed by a … Continue reading

Posted in Bexley Council, Consultations, Environment, key habitat features, Open spaces, Parks, River Shuttle, RSPB, SINC, vegetation management | Leave a comment

FotS it all about ? – a brief history of looking after Bexley’s little river.

Friends of the Shuttle (FotS) was formed in March 2013. For two years previous to this, dedicated volunteers had been working hard to keep the River Shuttle free of litter as part of a Thames21 project that was funded by … Continue reading

Posted in Bexley, Friends of the Shuttle, River Shuttle, SINC, Thames21, Volunteering | Leave a comment

The latest Friends of the Shuttle Newsletter, just published, looks back on a year of hard work and considerable achievements, as well as setting out the programme of events for the next few months, which look set to include some … Continue reading

Posted on by Chris Rose | Leave a comment

ERITH QUARRY – BEXLEY’S ‘LAST GREAT WILDERNESS’ – UNDER THREAT FROM PLANNING APPLICATION. PLEASE OBJECT! NEW DEADLINE WEDS 17th DECEMBER.

Chris Rose, Vice-chair Bexley Natural Environment Forum Erith Quarry, a Grade 1 Site of Importance for Nature Conservation, is now the subject of a planning application for 600 dwellings, which would see three quarters of its semi-natural habitat destroyed. London … Continue reading

Posted in Bexley, Bexley Council, BNEF, Environment, Erith Quarry, Extinction, Housing targets, Light pollution, London Wildlife Trust, Mammals, Open spaces, Planning, Reptiles and Amphibians, SINC | 3 Comments

Erith Quarry – any further decisions on SINC status must be subject to public scrutiny

Erith Quarry, a Grade 1 Site of Importance for Nature Conservation in the Borough, is the subject on an impending planning application for up to 600 houses, which would see a substantial area of important grass and scrub-land disappear. In … Continue reading

Posted in Bexley Council, Consultations, Erith Quarry, SINC | 1 Comment

Crossness records preview: April – June 2014

The next Friends of Crossness newsletter is imminent, but a preview of the April to June wildlife records that will be published therein has been circulated by Site Manager Karen Sutton. Karen does a massive job collating all the data … Continue reading

Posted in Crossness Nature Reserve, Recording, SINC, Volunteering | Leave a comment

The importance and management of heath and acid grassland – free lecture series

The placenames Bexleyheath, Northumberland Heath, Lessness Heath and road names such as Little Heath Road, Heath Way and Broomfield Road attest to the heathland heritage of large parts of the Borough of Bexley. Heather-dominated heath survives (with management) in Lesnes … Continue reading

Posted in Bexley Council, Heathland, SINC | Leave a comment