A statement from Action for the River Kennet (ARK):
COOPER'S MEADOW & CONSERVATION GRAZING SHEEP STATEMENT:
Cooper’s Meadow is significant in Marlborough’s history as a market town and was used to overnight sheep on their way to the market. Since the 1940s over 97% of meadow in England and Wales has disappeared. In 2009 Marlborough Town Council took the ambitious decision to manage Coopers Meado
w to recreate a meadow environment. ARK have been allowed to manage the meadow by grazing as part of a wider habitat restoration project funded by charitable donations. We have turned it from an area dominated by ruderal and rank vegetation (docks, nettles, meadowsweet and thistle) to a grassland with a high proportion of fine grasses and an increasing number of wild flowers. We have seen clear results and people have enjoyed seeing livestock in the Town Centre. Abolishing grazing work would cost the council public money. To maintain the wildflowers they would need to hire or buy a machine to cut-and- cart in addition to the significant cost of removing fencing. We hope that those councillors who voted in favour of this project in 2009 will remember why they did so, and vote to keep the sheep on December 15th. We hope the new councillors will take the time to learn more about why their predecessors agreed to grazing, before throwing away five years of hard work and effort. ARK will be at the meeting on 15th and we are allowed to table a question.
