SNOPPER`S NATURE NOTES..

As you may have gathered by now, I am a keen nature lover and this week a couple of things have made me realise the threats that confront the natural environment here in deepest Kent.

The first concerns the wellbeing of our only poisonous snake - the adder.   An article in today`s local newspaper , the Kent Messenger, reveals that adders may become an endangered species.   The National Amphibian and Reptile Recording Scheme (NARRS) confirms that adders are in decline and there `is a risk that they may disappear from our landscape for good.`   A local outfit called the Medway Valley Countryside Partnership (MVCP) wants to find out just how serious the problem is locally.   They have joined forces with the Kent Reptile and Amphibian Group (KRAG) to find out how many adders there are in the Kent Downs Area of Outstanding Beauty (KDAONB.)

Between them they have identified 30 areas  as potential adder habitats and for six months they will be monitoring evidence of adder activity.   The evidence produced will be used for guidance on how to improve the land for this diminishing species.

SNOPPER SAYS : Wrong. I think the six months could be better spent eradicating this dangerous species from the area and if the MVCP/KRAG publicise the habitats they have identified then I suggest a sponsored adder eradication programme in aid of a local charity such as Green that Hillside would be much preferable. 

 

 On a grander scale, a few miles away in yet another sylvan valley of the Garden of England, there`s much kerfuffle about a strawberry grower (who supplies Wimbledon no less) wanting to cover a Kentish hillside with 408 acres of polytunnels so as to guarantee a good crop in time for the excesses of SW19.   There`s a lot of fuss locally by people who have already seen the visual impact of polytunnels on the KDAOB and so there is a bit of a campaign against this planning application for yet more of them.   The local council have deferred a decision so as to inspect the area concerned at first hand and whilst they may be right to tread carefully one can`t help wondering whether the delays have already put the strawberries and cream orgy at risk.

SNOPPER SAYS ; I think they should approve the application immediately as the fruit growing industry is a vital cog in the Kent economy and anyway I like strawberries and cream.   However, so as to satisfy the objectors as well as giving added impetus to the adder eradication campaign, I would suggest a planning condition that requires the polytunnels to be painted green.   Simples.