After a long and bitter battle to stop an infill development of 11 houses being built on the grounds of two bungalows and their gardens in Albert Road, work has now begun to clear the site of existing vegetation prior to building. In April, note, the season when wildlife is at its peak of activity. Due to this site having lain dormant for two years, and becoming thoroughly overgrown, it has become a wildlife haven, which will now perish at a stroke.

The inspector of appeal number two understood that "some of the existing boundary vegetation (was) to be retained" - thus overcoming the concern of the inspector in appeal number one about lack of opportunity for imaginative landscaping.

In the minutes of the Albert and Victoria Road Appeal Group's meeting with the developer on June 30, 2005, Duncan Isaacs specifically asked about the boundary vegetation, and the developer confirmed this "would be honoured despite plans showing new planting - he added that removing existing vegetation and then replacing it would incur unnecessary costs".

It now appears this will not be honoured. Everything green is to be uprooted and quickly despatched to the growing mountain of sawdust, as it is churned through the noisy shredder - birds' nests and all. The ordinary person would never get away with such actions, but developers seem to. Is it any wonder many people say money speaks?

Let us hope the loophole which presently allows building on brownfield sites - particularly gardens - will soon be closed, as recently proposed by a Private Member's Bill in Parliament.

The call today is surely to preserve wildlife in our towns as far as possible, and not desecrate it.

Duncan Isaacs, Jackie Blair, Catherine Ward, Albert Road, Ledbury.