Wildlife Circus

non-native rye grass with the botanical interest of a rugby pitch Kingston Council has commissioned Land Use Consultants (LUC) to undertake an independent review of the borough’s Sites of Importance for Nature Conservation (SINCs). SINCs are non-statutory sites that are designated due to their importance for nature conservation. A number of wildlife areas across Kingston are already recognised as SINCs as they form vital components of the ecological network and green corridor in the borough. The council attest that, 'A SINC designation raises awareness of a site’s importance for wildlife and biodiversity, particularly with regards to planning and land management decisions, and helps ensure they are afforded adequate protection by the planning system in London'. But will our degraded sites  pass this 'test' as the designation hasn't stopped sites from being destroyed or developed for infrastructure. Thames Water Pipe Track Site of (Grade 1 Borough) Import...

Tom Hooker Surbiton Wildlife Group The quarterly meeting of the Kingston Biodiversity Network was held at the new Quaker Meeting House, Fairfield East in their wonderful new building.   Here we heard from Kingston's  Greenspaces Manager regarding the updated Greenspaces Strategy 2015-2018, which will include some of the documents we have been compiling over the last two years. This  includes the Habitat Action Plans for Open Water, Woodland and Grassland. It also has a statement on lighting and there was some debate on the topic of unwanted light spillage from members of the audience.  Karen Harper spoke about the London Invasive Species Initiative and made clear the distinction between 'invasive' non-native species, which cause harm to the environment such as Japanese knotweed and Giant hogweed and 'non-invasive', non-native species, such as Little owl, which cause no harm. Lastly Tom Hooker, the Chair of Surbiton Wildlife Group (see previous post)...