Lib Dem MP Vikki Slade Organises Meeting to Protect Upton Heath
Liberal Democrat MP Vikki Slade has today met with the Dorset Wildlife Trust and representatives from Dorset and BCP Councils to discuss plans to protect Upton Heath from possible mineral excavation.
The meeting, arranged urgently after news broke earlier this week that part of the site would be going to auction on the 29th April, served as an opportunity for Vikki, both councils and the Dorset Wildlife Trust to coordinate their approach to preserving the long-term future of the heath.
Upton Heath, situated right in the middle of Vikki’s constituency of Mid Dorset and North Poole, has already been designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI). It provides the habitat for all six of Britain’s native reptiles and sixteen species of dragonfly. In the past, the heath was used as a quarry for the pottery and brick-making industries, but it is now a peaceful yet well-trodden route for walkers and birdwatchers.
Vikki said “Upton Heath is a natural jewel in the crown of our corner of Dorset. However, its combination of wildlife, bog and ponds, grassland and wooded areas also grant it international ecological importance. It is a truly unique environment we are lucky to call our own.”
The historic permissions granted for mineral extraction in the 1950s mean that a successful buyer could seek to open the site to excavation and therefore make it inaccessible to the public. As well as preventing visitors to Upton Heath, the impacts of this on the remaining wildlife would be severe with Vikki commenting that “with active mining going on at one end of the Heath, it is impossible to envisage our rare reptiles and birds choosing to remain in their homes at the other end of the Heath.”
During the meeting, attendees discussed different options to fund a purchase of the site or seek additional protections, to meet the joint goals of natural renewal and public access. Dorset Wildlife Trust have already launched a fundraising campaign titled ‘Save Upton Heath’ which in just two days has already raised over a quarter of their goal. Yet more funding is likely to be needed, from the public and where possible through contributions from both Councils.
Alongside the councillors who represent the wards around Upton Heath, Vikki has launched a petition to demonstrate the strength of feeling and to add weight to the calls to purchase the site.
The site is at particular risk because of the new Government’s push to increase the pace of building to deliver much-needed homes. However, Vikki was clear that in this instance “nature is not an obstacle, we must keep these sites of value at the heart of our developing communities for all of us to access.”
Vikki has campaigned for the preservation of Dorset heathland previously, with a petition presented to Parliament to stop the sale of disposable barbecues which have caused some of the wildfires that plagued the country last Spring and Summer. However, the sale of Upton Heath presents a more immediate and man-made existential threat to this vital natural asset.