HS2 take possession of part of Calvert Jubilee
This morning HS2 workers removed protesters and took control of a section of the nature reserve.
Last updated 22nd Sep 2020
The Buckinghamshire nature reserve lies along the high speed railway line.
Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust have announced that this morning HS2 have taken possession of a 'large section' of Calvert Jubilee Nature Reserve.
Anti-HS2 protesters who has set up camp at the site were removed by security guards and police.
BBOWT confirm that HS2 have a warrant for the site and so can take it over however they were told a warning would be given.
Matthew Stantion, BBOWT’s Head of Planning, Policy and Advocacy, explains:
"We were assured by HS2 a few weeks ago, in fact months ago, that we would be told in advance the date that they would take possession.
"However, they moved into the site without telling us and only gave us a call when they were already on site clearing it."
HS2 workers are set to flatten an area on the eastern side of the reserve to make space for the railway.
The Trust have said that this construction work will 'will destroy decades of hard work by BBOWT staff and volunteers who have made the site a haven for wildlife.'
Matthew says that the work HS2 say is being done to support wildlife is not enough to outweigh the damage:
"Calvert Jubilee is an incredible precious site, it is an intricate matrix of different habitats and it is a very precious spot that is going to be trashed by HS2
"In some respects the damage will be done just by them building HS2, but HS2 and the government need to stop and rethink completely.
"They need to stop and make sure they put nature at the heart of their plans which is not what they're doing at the moment.
"They're going to be putting some mitigation measures and green spaces elsewhere but all that should have been done long before they trashed these sites.
"They need to take a hard look and actually put nature first."
An HS2 spokesperson said:
“The vast majority of the Calvert Jubilee nature reserve will be unaffected by our work and we have been working closely with the local Wildlife Trust to ensure that visitors will still be able to access the site. HS2 takes the environmental impact of construction very seriously, and we are delivering a ‘green corridor’ alongside the line made up of new woodland, wetland and other wildlife habitats, with 70,000 new trees planted across Buckinghamshire already this year.
"All leading environment organisations agree that climate change is the biggest threat facing wildlife and habitats in the UK. HS2 will get people out of their cars, off domestic flights and take lorries off our congested roads, reducing transport carbon emissions and improving air quality.”