Call for Autumn Statement and Roads Investment Strategy to abandon road expansion in favour of green retrofits
Today The Wildlife Trusts express huge disappointment at the Government’s plans for new roads and large-scale expansion, and believe the £15 billion allocated for the road network could be much better spent on combating the effects of climate change and environmental problems caused by roads – which include polluted road run-off, sound and air pollution plus habitat loss and fragmentation.
Paul Wilkinson, Head of Living Landscape at The Wildlife Trusts, says:
“Roads are one of several ways in which we’re investing poorly in society. Huge amounts of money are being spent for dubious returns. We want to see an end to the loss of wild places caused by new roads. Wildlife Trusts across the country are fighting road schemes which threaten to destroy precious natural resources, demolish wild places and obliterate the species they contain.
“Allocating less than two percent of a massive £15bn budget to repairing and improving wildlife habitat is a shocking missed opportunity and a sign that Government chooses not to understand the importance of investing in nature.
Proposed road schemes that would blight much-loved wild places range from the A47 widening in Norfolk, the A27 in Sussex, the Trans-Pennine route and the new M4 road in Wales which would devastate the ancient, beautiful wetland landscape of the Gwent Levels around Newport (the Welsh government wishes to borrow funds from the Exchequer to pay for this route).
Paul Wilkinson continues:
“We’re calling on the government to show a greater commitment to restoring nature and improving our environment in the Autumn Statement – we’d like to see this reflected in the Roads Investment Strategy too.”
Greening measures, from living bridges, wetland management and landscape connectivity, would provide a tangible chance to fix deep-seated environmental problems created by past decisions - maximising the environmental performance and value of the network in the future.
There are places across the road network where areas of woodland, wetland, and grassland could be created to increase the size, or improve the quality, of existing habitat patches or re-establish links between them by creating new wild areas. These habitats could clean run-off, create sound barriers, capture pollution and absorb carbon dioxide. The road side verges themselves can be managed to provide wildlife corridors, which reach into and connect our towns and wider countryside.
The Wildlife Trusts are one of several organisations to back the recent CPRE and Campaign for Better Transport’s 2014 ‘Better not Bigger – why strategic roads need a green retrofit programme’ report and have a wealth of experience in restoring the natural environment.