At last… the clearance of Hoad’s Wood near Bethersden begins

The great clean-up has begun!

We speak, of course, of Hoad’s Wood, the site that made national headlines after being targeted for the illegal dumping of vast amounts of landfill waste.

Some four acres of the wood – a Site of Special Scientific Interest near Bethersden – were wrecked by the dumping of some 30,000 tonnes of waste and it was only a fierce campaign that brought widespread recognition of the issue and eventually some action to get it resolved.

And on Tuesday, June 24, the first load of waste left the wood for a landfill site in Essex.

A statement from the Environment Agency said: “The huge operation, co-ordinated by the Environment Agency and carried out by approved contractors Acumen Waste Services Ltd, will see more than 30,000 tonnes of household and construction waste removed.

“More than 50 specialist workers have been deployed to dig up the harmful waste and carefully transport it for safe disposal at approved facilities. The whole operation is expected to take more than one year to complete.

“Organised criminals dumped the lorry loads of waste, piled up to 15 feet high in certain areas, in 2023. Hoad’s Wood is a Site of Special Interest, home to rare plants and wildlife, and a popular beauty spot for nearby communities.”

After a depressing amount of buck-passing and inertia from the relevant authorities, no one emerges from the saga of Hoad’s Wood with great credit other than those who campaigned so vehemently for the wood to be cleared and ultimately restored.

Hopefully, the operation will be completed to the extent that Hoad’s Wood will one day return to something like its former glories as a haven for a wonderful range of Wealden wildlife.

CPRE Kent, who were heavily involved in the effort to highlight what happened here, will be reporting on the clean-up process and indeed beyond as the restoration hopefully gets under way.

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