The HS2 high-speed railway line was designed to connect England's major economic centres, open up regional markets and attract investment and employment opportunities. However, this project, which received parliamentary approval for phase 1 in February 2017, is not without controversy. Particular criticism has been directed at the significant additional costs and the destruction of ancient forests.

The HS2 high-speed railway route

Construction work will be divided into phase 1, phase 2A and phase 2B: the first phase will connect London to Birmingham, the second London to Crewe, and the third will also reach Manchester and Leeds. The rail network will cover 560 kilometres and will allow passengers to travel at 400 kilometres per hour, a speed unmatched in Europe. The original budget was £34 billion (more than €37 billion), with an estimated return of £2.5 (€2.75) for every pound invested. HS2 is therefore expected to bring great benefit to the English economy.

However, projected costs have already risen to £106 billion (€119 billion), due to a five-year delay caused mainly by ground conditions that proved significantly more difficult than initially anticipated. In addition, the global coronavirus pandemic has fuelled debate about the usefulness of such an ambitious railway, but HS2 minister Andrew Stephenson has stated that current travel trends will not last long and that the railway still holds strategic value. Furthermore, the trains designed for this high-speed line will be 17 times more CO2-efficient than flights, seven times more efficient than cars and twice as efficient as current trains.

The impact on ancient forests

It appears that HS2's positive effects may be overshadowed by the negative ones. According to the Woodland Trust, the UK's largest woodland conservation charity, 108 ancient forests are at risk of being damaged or destroyed, and an area the size of Manchester will be covered in concrete. HS2 Ltd., the public body tasked with developing the project, has pledged an investment of nearly £6.7 million (€7.6 million) to restore some ancient woodlands and plant new ones, but it will be decades before these new forests are suitable for the return of the wildlife displaced from the destroyed forests.

Ancient forests offer an indispensable habitat for many species, both endangered and not at risk. These precious habitats are called "ancient" because they date back to at least 1600 (1750 in Scotland) and contain very old trees, nutrient-rich soils, a great variety of fungi, invertebrates and dead wood. The accumulation of dead branches and trunks over the centuries allows the formation of high-quality soil, which can support vast colonies of fungi, which in turn enhance the lives of plants and animals.

The soil is a unique component and makes ancient forests extremely valuable. These forests were once widespread across the United Kingdom; in the eleventh century they covered approximately fifteen per cent of the country's entire surface area, whereas today they cover only 2.4 per cent. Moreover, the areas that remain wild are increasingly fragmented, a factor that causes serious harm to local wildlife: many species of insects, mammals and birds are now constantly at risk of isolation. The construction of a vast railway line such as HS2 would only increase the fragmentation of already threatened habitats.

The affected communities

Beyond the ecological damage, the construction of HS2 will also cause serious problems for many communities. In South Cubbington, Warwickshire, residents have voiced their concerns about plans to cut a trench wider than a motorway through a hillside. The Cubbington action group against HS2 was also founded to coordinate protests against the project.

Many people have enjoyed the peace provided by the woodlands all their lives, walking their dogs in nature, taking strolls and exercising in the undergrowth. The destruction of much of the hill and the woodland will make all of this impossible; moreover, the construction works for the railway line and subsequently the passage of trains will certainly have serious consequences for the area. Other communities have also protested against the project, including those of Weeford near Lichfield and Hillingdon in the London Borough of Hillingdon.

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Today Cubbington Action Group campaigners protested the destruction of Cubbington Wood ahead of tomorrow’s Government HS2 decision - if HS2 proceeds it will be “an enormous act of ecological vandalism” #StopHS2 #ExtinctionRebellion #ClimateEmergency

theguardian.com/environment/20…

♥ 10 10 feb 2020 · Apri su X →

Along the project's route stands the Cubbington pear tree, a 250-year-old tree elected "tree of the year" by the Woodland Trust in 2015. Residents have begun a peaceful protest against the construction of HS2 in this area, where roads and footpaths have already been closed in preparation for the start of works. HS2's designers have committed to taking cuttings from the historic pear tree with the aim of propagating it and preserving its legacy. Despite these steps in the right direction, the company appears not to have considered that pear trees take decades to reach maturity and even longer to begin performing important functions for wildlife.

This much-debated new rail network will undoubtedly bring great change to the English landscape. The harm this project could cause to both local residents and nature may well outweigh the anticipated benefits. The project's designers have promised to reduce the environmental impact, but at best this will amount to mitigating the damage done, not undoing its effects. The value of wildlife and ancient forests is difficult to quantify, especially when set against the monetary value attributed to HS2. Nevertheless, at this time of profound environmental concern, coupled with the need for urgent action, it is clear that the value of forests goes beyond economic gain.

Translated by Elettra Tsikoudis