A CHARITY has accused the Government of announcing “destructive proposals” that place Dorset’s wildlife at “extreme risk”.

Dorset Wildlife Trust has outlined four key areas of concern relating to government policy – particularly around proposed investment zones and plans to lift a ban on fracking in England.

The Trust claims there is “no evidence that fracking is safe” and said investment zones, alongside a new planning and infrastructure bill, “threaten to weaken vital protections for habitats and wildlife”.

It was announced last month that England’s fracking ban had been lifted as Liz Truss’s Government vowed to explore all avenues to improve energy security.

Fracking is the process of hydraulic fracturing, which uses high-pressure liquid to release gas from shale formations.

Meanwhile, areas of Dorset could become an investment zone – an initiative to drive growth and unlock housing by lowering taxes and liberalising planning frameworks to encourage rapid development and business investment.

No firm commitments have been made for Dorset to become an investment zone, however.

Brian Bleese, chief executive of DWT, said “We are deeply concerned about these plans to weaken the legal protections for nature at a time when it is already in such a vulnerable state.

"It goes against the explicit promises the Government made in their 2019 manifesto and the mandate they were elected to govern on, whilst putting wildlife and green spaces in Dorset at extreme risk. 

“Reversing plans to support nature-friendly farming and abandoning regulations that protect nature could decimate local wildlife, which is already suffering steep declines.

"Since 1970, more than 40 per cent of species have declined in abundance, with 26 per cent of mammals at risk of disappearing altogether. In Dorset over 400 species recorded in the past are now thought to be extinct in the county. 

“We are calling on the public to contact their elected representatives and tell them just how concerned they are about these dangerous plans."

These destructive proposals will affect not just Dorset’s wildlife and wild places, but also the green spaces where we live, food security and our fight against the impacts of climate change.” 

DWT also pointed to a ‘review’ of environmental land management schemes – designed to support farmers who ‘climate-proof’ their businesses – and the Retained EU Law Bill which would enable ministers to “significantly alter the UK’s regulatory and legal landscape”.

The charity said the proposals had caused “outrage” among environmental and conservation charities.

Regrading fracking, a spokesperson for South Dorset MP Richard Drax said: “He has already said that it depends on so much, including and especially where the chosen (fracking) sites are. It is very difficult to comment when so little is known.  

"Also, while Richard fully supports the aims of COP 26, the current crisis caused by the war in Ukraine means that we may have to temporarily rely on fossil fuels in order to keep our power on.”

Mr Drax's spokesperson stressed fossil fuels were a 'temporary' solution.

In a previous column for the Echo, Mr Drax said the country had “foolishly” left fracking ‘untapped’, “in a fit of self harm”. 

Previously, the Echo has reported three companies being granted licences to explore a total of nine blocks of land.

These covered areas including Piddlehinton, Puddletown, Bere Regis, Wareham Forest, Poole, Bournemouth, part of the Lulworth Ranges, Corfe Castle and Swanage.

Licences previously issued by the Oil and Gas Authority (OGA) do not give any direct permission for operations to begin, rather grants the licensee exclusivity over an area of land to explore and extract.