Marcus Turley of the Surrey Heathland Project will be attending the meeting to give a presentation on the work of the Project.
Minutes:
Marcus Turley of the Surrey Heathland Project, gave a presentation on the work undertaken to recover and maintain the heathlands across the County, including the key sites in the Borough of Sheets Heath, Brookwood Heath, Prey Heath and Smarts Heath. Examples of the work necessary to maintain such sites were given, and Marcus explained the importance of the sites both nationally and internationally. All the species of reptiles found in the UK could be found on the heaths, including the rare Smooth Snake. An amazing range of insects could be found on the sites, with a recent survey of invertebrates having found 373 different species. Similarly, the sites were host to a wide variety of plants, including some very rare examples.
Heathland was becoming increasingly rare, and Marcus reported that up to 85% of heathland had been lost over the past 200 years. The work of the Partnership sought to remove invasive species such as birch and pine and adopted a number of practices and approaches, including ground clearance, felling and grazing, all undertaken to promote the growth of heather.
It was noted that a recent tour of Sheets Heath, arranged for all Councillors, had been very informative and useful, despite poor weather. However, the visit, hosted by Marcus, had been poorly attended and the Chairman proposed that a further visit should be arranged for the summer months to encourage more Councillors to visit the heaths and gain a greater understanding of their importance.
Councillor Davis noted that the Horsell Common Preservation Society had introduced a licensing scheme for professional dog walkers and enquired whether the scheme had proven successful, expressing concern that it could have the effect of displacing the professional dog walkers to other heathland sites. Paul Rimmer explained that the licence scheme was being run as a pilot and that its outcomes could be used to justify introducing similar licensing arrangements at other sites. Paul added that the possibility of using Public Space Protection Orders was being considered as an option in dealing with littering and dog fouling.
The Chief Executive, Ray Morgan, expressed his surprise at the state of the heaths and noted his appreciation of the recent site visit which had highlighted the issues faced by those seeking to maintain the existing heathland areas. There was clearly a need for additional funding if the work was to continue and the Chief Executive suggested that the Committee could request Officers to explore different options with a view to bringing forward a proposal that would see funding allocated to assist in the work being undertaken to protect the heaths in the Borough. If supported, Officers would bring a report forward in the Autumn which would seek to identify funds through the 2019/20 business plan. In drawing up such a report, it was anticipated that Officers would need the support and assistance of many partner organisations.
The Committee welcomed the Chief Executive’s proposal, and further agreed that a second visit to one of the Borough’s Heaths should be arranged for the summer months, with all Councillors strongly advised to attend.
The Chairman thanked Tracey, Arran, Marcus, Paul and Rachel for attending the meeting and for providing a very informative briefing on the Borough’s heathland and its management.
RESOLVED
(i) Officers be requested to bring forward a proposal to the Overview and Scrutiny Committee in the Autumn 2018 to establish a formal programme for the maintenance of the Borough’s heathlands, with funding to be identified through the annual business plan from 2019/20 onwards; and
(ii) a further site visit to one of the Borough’s Heaths be arranged for the summer months, with all Councillors to be encouraged to attend.