Open Letter to Gareth Johnson MP to help save The Swanscombe Peninsula!

Dear Gareth Johnson MP,

As you will be aware, the consultation for a proposal to develop The London Resort on The Swanscombe Peninsula has now closed. Due to the development being declared an NSIP, the decision-making process has been taken entirely out of the hands of the local authority and straight to the Secretary of State to decide its future, with no regard to the country’s extensive planning laws.

Unsurprisingly, plans to develop a theme park on this natural oasis have garnered huge opposition, on both a local and national level. The Swanscombe Peninsula is officially described as a brownfield site, but in spite of this, and in large part because of this, it is truly a wildlife gem to be treasured. Unlike some other brownfield sites that have been adversely contaminated, resulting in damage to the surrounding land, it is this unique mixture of wet and dry habitats and the specific industrial use ofthis land that has made this site such a uniquely biodiverse area. Like chalk downland and saltmarsh, the harsher the conditions for life, the greater the diversity of the ecology supported. You cannot recreate this artificially.

Some may, at first sight, seek to dismiss this apparently, in parts, scruffy and barren landscape and see the marshes as ripe for development, however it is exactly this open mosaic land which is so rare and so valuable in this part of Kent, and almost unique in the country, supporting populations of rare invertebrates, breeding birds and numerous other creatures. The peninsula is currently home to 1,992 species of invertebrates (250 of which are of conservation concern). This includes the critically endangered Distinguished Jumping Spider, found in only one other site in the whole of the UK. There are endangered water voles and more breeding bird species (82) than at Rainham Marsh RSPB nature reserve, just across this same stretch of river, itself a designated marine conservation area for the species it nurture.

The Swanscombe marshes act as a natural flood barrier and with climate change now an accepted reality, the idea of building a theme park on a site that is liable to flooding is questionable to say the least. Marshland is also an especially crucial asset in the absorption of C02. Swanscombe is already adjacent to an official air quality management area and air pollution will further be compounded by an increase in traffic. The local road network is already terminally congested, and coupled with Ebbsfleet car park about to become a lorry customs checkpoint, if this development does go ahead, it may well come to a complete standstill. Local natural spaces have become even more hugely significant during lockdown. Residents havelong sought sanctuary in the marshes and being able to escape to this nature-rich beauty spot has undoubtedly benefitted the physical and mental health of many over the past decades and especially during this challenging time.

For the reasons stated above, and whatever the outcome of imminent change on national policy on infrastructure projects, we implore you to support us in stopping the wanton destruction of this wildlife haven. Not only will it be an act of vandalism against the environment, this area is simply not an appropriate site for a gigantic theme park & the local infrastructure could not accommodate it. As our local MP we hope that you back us in protecting the marshes before they are lost forever in a concrete tomb.

Many Thanks,

The Swanscombe Peninsula Campaign Group.