Appeal to Councils

Local media has recently run articles concerning proposals to build up to 10,000 new homes on green belt land between Southend City and Rochford District.

No firm decision has yet been made, but public concern has been expressed about the loss of so much countryside.

Before any decisions are made, SE Essex Friends of the Earth is appealing to the local authorities, councillors and public, to consider the harsh realities the people of Essex face due to climate change and sea level rise.

A Friends of the Earth spokesperson said: “The warnings from scientists are dire; for example, that both the West Antarctic and Greenland ice sheets will collapse, potentially raising sea levels by up to 2 metres by 2100, with much greater rises in the centuries to come.

“Before approving new housing estates, councillors have a duty to ensure the homes and associated infrastructure are genuinely sustainable and won’t have to be abandoned in the decades to come.

“Some councillors dream of a major new road into Southend to alleviate congestion, but any new road to the east of Rochford will eventually be submerged.”

Jon Fuller, of SE Essex Friends of the Earth, said: “Before councillors make decisions on where new homes are built, they need to give greater consideration to the young, who will have to contend with the mistakes that are made today.

“Due to sea level rise, the young will have to endure the burden of rehousing hundreds of thousands of people.

“If we build new homes today, on land that we know will eventually be flooded, that merely increases the costs we impose upon our own children. Councillors should also listen to public concern about the decline UK wildlife.

“With one in six UK species at risk of extinction, people want to protect our countryside for nature. I urge councillors not to make it even harder on the young. If they think imaginatively, we can provide all the new homes we need within brownfield sites. We particularly need to build on car parks in Southend City centre and ‘medium rise’ along the public transport corridors (typically 6 floors above a ground floor shop).”

SE Essex FoE video – https://www.facebook.com/SEEssexFoE/videos/855689051859074/?app=fbl

Picture : Jon Fuller

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