The Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust (BBOWT) say it's not too late to reverse the decision to build the high speed rail network through the region
It's been a year since the government gave the green light to HS2 and the wildlife charity say in that time, the financial and environmental costs have mounted and the rationale(s) disintegrated.
That's why they're calling on the government to stop and have a rethink.
In a blog on their website, Matthew Stanton from BBOWT writes a compelling case for ditching the project. He says:
"It is fair to say the world has changed a great deal in the last year, and the facts surrounding HS2 have altered dramatically. If the government needed all the facts a year ago to decide the way forward with HS2, surely the same remains true, and the impacts of the pandemic on transport demands must be factored in."
He goes on to say:
"The government needs to stop and rethink the entire project, but it needs to do it openly and honestly. The government’s justifications for the project change every time a justification is debunked."
HS2 has been a controversial topic ever since it was first consulted on 2010, but the government gave the official go ahead 12 months ago, prior to the first COVID lockdown.
For more information on the project, including the potential benefits it can bring, head to HS2s webpages
To read Mr Stanton's full blog, go to BBOWT's webpages.