It’s a mistake to suggest that the neglect we see is related to rewilding

Firstly the use of the term rewilding to apply to any area in Guernsey is stretching the idea past its breaking point. Rewilding refers to the large-scale restoration of nature until it can take care of itself again. It is typically undertaken on a landscape scale to restore habitats, natural processes and as appropriate missing species (eg European Beaver). As far as I am aware no-one has even considered such an idea for Guernsey, (re-flood La Grand Mare anyone?) so I suggest that there is no rewilding taking place in Guernsey and it is a mistake to suggest that the neglect we see around us is related to such ideas.

Secondly, and it seems without any particular basis, Mr Batiste starts his article by stating that he is ‘not a big pollinator fan’ from which I assume he was taking a general swipe at ‘environmentalists’ rather than that somehow he believes that the bees, butterflies and other insects on which we depend for a large proportion of our food and which have been seriously depleted by the excessive use of pesticides by the intensive farming industry throughout the globe, are somehow responsible for the weeds growing along our pavements and roadsides!

Thirdly, he makes what appears a fairly weakly argued commentary on islanders who comply with the laws requiring twice-yearly hedge cutting which in general appears to work fairly well. It is debatable whether this particular requirement really contributes to the neglect identified.

The article is surrounded by a number of unidentified photographs, many showing roadsides with weeds growing alongside the walls or between the kerb-stones, one showing some seats looking a little overgrown and two (middle left and top right), almost incongruously, showing what appears to me to be examples of the ;natural beauty; of the island which Rob suggests we might be losing. Wild flowers growing alongside and spilling onto our coastal paths don’t seem to represent neglect but excellent examples of positive environment available to all.

What Rob’s article doesn’t comment authoritatively on, is why we have the messy roadsides that I suspect almost everyone thinks are unsightly. Was the ban on the use of glyphosate really what stopped the kerbs and road edges being kept clean or is it cost cutting from government? Banning glyphosate use without any suitable and tested alternatives certainly seems short-sighted and was perhaps based on weak science and the well-known aberrations of the United States courts. Is there a case for the ban to be removed or reduced? What is the real scientific case? Is it really the other products in herbicides containing glyphosate which are the problem? Are there actually suitable alternatives to the man on the quadbike spraying glyphosate or are we just seeing cut-backs by government and no-one is trying to keep our roads looking clean and tidy any more? He mentions a shift of staffing numbers away from States Works towards more office based civil servants jobs, do the statistics support such a claim?

I really hoped that the access of the GEP would have resulted in answers to some of the above questions and hope that if and when Rob Batiste writes about ‘overgrown grass verges and dead weeds along our eastern front’ that he might have undertaken more research and be able to provide us with answers, rather than simply pointing out something that he dislikes.

ANDREW GUILLE

Elishama

Rue de la Fosse

St Saviour’s