It is not long now before the 100th anniversary of the ending of World War 1 will be upon us. This historic event will be recognised with a display at the Manor house starting on Friday 9th November and continuing through the weekend. The Council are also arranging for a commemorative plaque to be laid at the war memorial along with 2 'there but not there' silhouettes. These will be in place for the service on remembrance Sunday. As part of these historic commemorations the Buntingford Film Club will be showing the film "Journeys End" at Benson Hall on Saturday 10th November at 7.30 pm, tickets available from Chris Dellar.

CPRE (Campaign for the Protection of Rural England) have analysed new government data and are highlighting an extremely concerning trend - that almost 10,000 hectares of Green Belt land has been released for development since 2012. This is the countryside next door for 30 million people, and is only meant to be released under 'exceptional circumstances'. And yet Green Belts are clearly being eroded by urban sprawl, with the pressure for councils to meet unrealistic housing targets allowing developers to target these profitable sites.

Time and time again, the government is seen to be failing in its commitment to protect the Green Belt. CPRE plan to keep up the pressure on the government to better protect our Green Belts, and push for developments to be built on brownfield land first. There is currently enough brownfield land in England to accommodate more than 1 million homes, with almost three quarters of this land in areas with Green Belt land. CPRE is urging the government and local authorities to ensure brownfield land is redeveloped before any more greenbelt land is released.

Green Belt land is some of the most profitable for developers to build on due to it being 'shovel ready', surrounded by countryside and within commuting distance to major towns and cities - making its release for development extremely desirable for house builders. This leaves councils to foot the bill for resulting infrastructure requirements, such as schools, shops and roads.

This is one of those areas where it is difficult to see where individuals can make any difference - and although Buntingford does not have the luxury of green belt 'protection' this trend should worry us all, once green belt is gone it is gone forever. If anyone feels strongly about this they could lobby their MP Sir Oliver Heald.

Graham Bonner, Chairman, Buntingford Civic Society

If you have any queries about Buntingford Civic Society or issues you would like to raise, you can email the Chairman direct at chairman@buntingfordcivic.org.uk.

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