Dear Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs,

We are writing to urgently bring to your attention the critical environmental crisis unfolding in Hoad’s Wood, Ashford, Kent. This cherished area of natural beauty, designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), is currently facing a dire situation due to rampant illegal waste dumping. What was once a vibrant habitat for diverse species is now a desolate wasteland, with processed landfill waste strewn across a 4-acre area, in some places reaching depths of over 20 feet. 

Despite previous warnings from the community dating back as far as 2015, the current catastrophe began escalating in July 2023 when community members reported observing 20-30 trucks a day, many unregistered, illegally disposing of waste in Hoad’s Wood. Despite these early alerts, a lack of prompt and effective intervention allowed the situation to deteriorate drastically into an environmental catastrophe.

The consequences of this negligence are profound. The accumulation of waste not only poses a significant threat to the area's biodiversity, undermining the habitat of local and rare flora and fauna, but it also adversely affects the well-being of the nearby community. The environmental degradation and potential health hazards this situation presents are intolerable.  The site is already giving off hydrogen sulphide gas and toxic leachate.  The leachate is seeping into the River Beult, a tributary of the River Medway.  This is harmful to the wildlife in the woods, the nearby community and wider public health.  

To rectify this crisis, we urge you to take immediate and decisive action. Allowing the Environment Agency (EA) to follow due process in prosecuting those responsible and, failing that, holding landlords accountable for clean-up, is not a solution that addresses the urgent environmental and the local communities’ needs. We must prioritize immediate clean-up efforts to restore Hoad’s Wood to its natural state immediately. This operation should also include measures to secure the area against future illegal dumping incidents. Furthermore, it is imperative to provide the necessary funding for these immediate actions whilst allowing the EA to concurrently run its process to try and recover monies from those responsible.

Moreover, it is crucial to investigate the delayed response from local authorities and to implement stronger preventive measures to avert similar environmental disasters in the future. Our call-to-action stems from a collective responsibility to protect and preserve our natural habitats. Sites of Special Scientific Interest, like Hoad’s Wood, are vital to our national heritage and biodiversity. Allowing such sites to deteriorate not only contravenes our environmental commitments but also deprives future generations of the opportunity to enjoy and learn from these invaluable natural resources.

Your intervention in this matter can serve as a benchmark for managing environmental crises in the UK, showcasing a commitment to safeguarding our natural landscapes and holding accountable those who threaten them. We implore you to take swift action to address the situation in Hoad’s Wood, ensuring the protection of our precious environmental assets for present and future generations.

Yours sincerely,

rescuehoadswood.org