‘Uprooting hedges ecological vandalism’

MR Westeman makes a number of interesting points in his letter of 22/09/20. However, his political view has clouded his argument somewhat.

Thousands of miles of ancient hedges have been lost in this country and this loss of valuable habitat has resulted in extinction threat to animals and birds. To “uproot hedges and replant 10ft back” would be ecological vandalism and cost either the landowner or the tax payer millions of pounds.

English Law, despite its faults, is currently the best system of checks and balances we have and to belittle it by claiming that a person challenging the state’s authority to force them to give up their property, “bogged down” in court is a shameful statement.

The reason hedges are 8ft to 10ft tall is that the skill to lay a hedge is being lost, along with other skill shortages, to simply cut 5ft to 7ft off the top of a hedge and expect there to be no consequences is naïve and shows little understanding of plants or the countryside.

The 20ft verges created along miles of roads would be presumably publicly owned and the cost of maintenance would be the responsibility of the local authority, placing a further financial burden on local people.

Hedges do not cause accidents and deaths, accidents are caused by people driving at an inappropriate speed for the road conditions, lower hedges will not resolve this issue. I would suggest that in fact the reverse will result and people will feel they are able to drive faster due to their perceived better vision.

There are, as I have outlined above, disadvantages and costs to Mr Westermann’s proposal which he fails to address and his argument on this matter is seriously flawed.

I would agree with the last point in his letter; we are becoming selfobsessed and lacking in the ability to engage in a reasoned argument. The result is vocal minorities are setting the agenda which is a dangerous precedent.

Matthew Cavill Coleford, Glos