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A unique ecological project to return 1,000 hectares
of lowland Sussex Weald to a natural
wildland grazing system is being threatened
by plans to dump 4.1 million tons of waste
from London on its doorstep.
The Knepp Wildland Project is the
first of its kind and has excited interest
from governments and environmental bodies
across Europe.
Using grazing animals such as longhorn cattle,
Tamworth pigs, Exmoor ponies and fallow deer
to manage and re-create natural habitat, the
Knepp Wildland Project aims to provide a
model for a more natural system of meat
production that also encourages soil
recovery and biodiversity.
The project’s founder, Charlie Burrell, who
attended the European Wilderness Conference
in Prague in May this year as guest speaker,
believes the landfill proposal by Cory
Environmental at Laybrook Brickworks in
Thakeham flies in the face of current
thinking on the environment and public
health.
“Here
we are, being supported by Government to try
and tackle some of the most serious problems
facing the country, like sustainability,
soil degradation, loss of habitat and
species extinction, and yet we’re still
having to deal with out-of-date,
environmentally hazardous, polluting
landfill.
There’s
a real risk to the health of everyone living
in the area of the landfill, as well as to
the survival of wildlife.
What will be the point of the Knepp
Wildland Project when it’s overrun by
seagulls and rats?”
In the 8 years since the Knepp Wildland Project
began, a number of rare and endangered
species, including turtle-doves,
nightingales, Beckstein’s and Barbastelle
bats, woodlarks, water voles and purple
emperor butterflies, have been recorded.
The Knepp Wildland Project lies to the east of the
proposed landfill site of Laybrook
Brickworks.
The Lay Brook itself runs through
Knepp Estate, feeding into Hammer Pond and
subsequently into the River Adur.
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