This month’s meeting will be about efforts to protect Danes Moss, an SSSI and nature reserve managed by Cheshire Wildlife Trust, from adjacent building development. The development will adversely affect the peatland, which is a carbon sink. The Moss lies roughly SSW of Macclesfield and ENE of Gawsworth Hall, and halfway between the main roads from Macclesfield to Congleton and Leek. Gordon Richardson, who volunteers for the Save Danes Moss campaign (see https://savedanesmoss.com/), or possibly one of his colleagues, will be giving the talk, and below is his description of what the talk will be about.

“For over 35 years large or contentious development proposals in Britain have been subject to systematic scientific appraisal through the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) process. For some types of project this has been an essential and effective way of ensuring a good outcome for both developer and society; for others it has been a green smokescreen, adding a veneer of respectability to even the most inappropriate of proposals.

“This talk will set out the basic elements of EIA and will compare what should be included in an assessment with what actually happened at Danes Moss North in Macclesfield. Danes Moss North (or South Macclesfield Development Area in planning terminology) is one of the most contentious development proposals in the North West and has parallels across the area for the way scientific rigour can be sacrificed for short-term gain.”