With the exemption of construction from Covid safety measures throughout the early part of the crisis, environment protectors were forced to stay out and physically protect green spaces along the length of the planned high speed railway route.
As economic activity has ramped up again this summer so has the amount of action being taken at conservation and historic places of interest, with camps having been established at sites including, in Buckinghamshire, Poor’s Piece Woods near Rosehill Farm, Wendover opposite Road Barn Farm, Jonas Hill Woods at Strawberry Hill Farm and in Warwickshire, Crackley Woods.
The HS2 rail project has been extraordinarily controversial as it enters the construction stage of its Phase One route (see below) and its chosen path affects 61 ancient woodland areas in this stretch alone.
Some of the confrontations with protectors have gotten ugly, with dangerous and potentially lethal tactics being used to keep people out of the trees. Two days ago for example a woman dropped 20ft out of a treeline after apparently having her lifeline cut.
Protector groups are asking for support both from more bodies (though do ask ahead) and with supplies. Requests from the groups mapped above are listed below, with Facebook links to contact/find out more:
- Poors Piece Conservation Project: Clothes for a two-year-old, tinned tomatoes, beans, chick peas, kidney beans, sweetcorn etc, soup, cereal (not oats), dried lentils (red/green), tinned coconut milk,
- Save Crackley Woods Camp: People for camp support (can be on a rota)
- Save Roald Dahl Woods (Jonas Hill): 2 core wire, Screw driver, Air horn, Elec tape, Cement, Climbing rope, Polly prop, duck tape
- Wendover Active Resistance Group: Food, socks and visitors
Pic: N Chadwick/CC
