Turning an Oasis into a Desert
- Steve Midgley
- 3 days ago
- 1 min read
On my walk this morning I went past a small wetland area alongside the river and noticed something written on one of the signs.

Someone had written
VANDALISM
Now a desert
No habitat for birds or animals
No Conservation
And I had to agree. This was once a small haven for wildlife and I'd written a previous blog about spotting a kingfisher on the pond. https://www.wildlifepirate.co.uk/single-post/2019/03/11/a-new-king-on-the-block
Along with the kingfishers I'd photographed grey herons and little egrets fishing, goosander , teal and mallards swimming and all the small woodland birds flitting among the trees and bushes alongside the water. Now there's nothing. I can't remember the last time I even saw a mallard on the water.

The banks have been flayed and the grass chopped and scraped away. Any bushes or small trees have been removed and nowhere is there any shelter for the small birds or perches for the kingfisher.

Here's the sign proudly proclaiming the area is " A nature reserve blooming with life" - What utter nonsense. What once was the start of a potentially beautiful wild space has now been turned into a wildlife desert.

Hang your head in shame Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, Calderdale Council, Calder Greening and the Environment Agency. What a complete waste of what could be a wildlife oasis.
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