A HABITAT in a rural part of Shropshire has allegedly been destroyed.
People who live in the Pennerley area, near the Welsh border, were left distressed by the wholesale clearance of gorse and scrubland in a field at Shelve.
Councillor Heather Kidd, who presents Chirbury & Worthen, said everything above ground on the five-acre site has been removed, including grass, destroying a valuable habitat for birds, insects and mammals.
“No one seems to know who was responsible,” said Councillor Kidd.
“I spoke to the planning department of Shropshire Council and as the site is not an SSSI (Site of Special Scientific Interest) or covered by any other protection, normal enforcement procedures did not apply.
“However, whoever did this overstepped the mark by fencing the whole area off, telling residents to ‘keep out’ as the land is crossed by a statutory public footpath.
“Nobody has the right to this, so I’ve persuaded the countryside department of Shropshire Council to reinstate the public footpath signs so that the public continues to have access across this land. They are also marking this as a right-of-way on the official maps.
“We now need to work with local environmental organisations and societies to see if we can find a way of preventing this sort of destruction in the future.”
