Development on a new community in Southeast England came to a halt following the discovery of a small colony of endangered species.
Kent Online reports construction on a section of the 15,000-home Ebbsfleet Garden City project was stopped over concerns that a population of Distinguished Jumping Spiders would be threatened. The parcel was designed to accommodate 1,300 homes, but the work stoppage came after Natural England designated part of the 2,500-acre brownfield land as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI).
Ian Piper, chief executive of the developer Ebbsfleet Development Corporation, stated the SSSI has “not affected delivery of the majority of new homes.” Edel McGurk, director of operations for Natural England, said the preservation of the spider colony was not incompatible with the need for new housing.
“Housing and nature are not competing interests – sustainable development and nature recovery must go hand in hand,” McGurk said. “We will continue to work with developers within Ebbsfleet Valley to explore innovative solutions to support the new development and help them comply with environmental law. We share the aim of supporting development in Ebbsfleet, while incorporating wildlife and enabling people to benefit from a nature reserve close to where they live and work.”
This is not the first time that endangered spiders disrupted real estate development. Four years ago, planning for a multi-billion-pound theme park was scrapped when a jumping spiders colony was identified at the development site in Swanscombe Peninsula.
Photo by Ganjarmustika1904 / Wikimedia Commons
