Town council to review management of green spaces

MELKSHAM Town Council has agreed to discuss how they manage green spaces in the area following feedback on the maintenance of the closed graveyard next to St Michael’s Church.

At a town council meeting earlier this month, local resident Ian Cardy raised concerns that the use of Roundup weedkiller in the graveyard had killed off wildflowers in the area, posing a threat to the area’s biodiversity.

He went on to suggest that as the town council are taking on more responsibility for green spaces, a management plan should be produced, with one aim being to help Melksham’s wildlife flourish.

At the meeting Ian said,“We believe that present management plans for the closed graveyard is reducing biodiversity, not enhancing it. The use of spraying glyphosate, which is Roundup, on the graves is killing vegetation including wildflowers.

“We would like to ask the town council to stop the use of Roundup, and we would also like to ask the town council to produce a green spaces management plan, because the town council will be taking over a lot of the green spaces in Melksham, and I’m sure everybody will want to see the wildlife in Melksham increase, not decrease.

“We are willing to help to produce such a plan and there is good evidence that enhancing wildlife and managing the wildlife does reduce management costs.

“We think Melksham people would rather see butterflies, birds, snakes and bats in the churchyard and put up with a few untidy graves. Wildlife in this country is in serious trouble; we have lost 40million birds in the last 50 years, the bees are in serious trouble and we rely on them for pollenation. If you lose the bees and the insects, there will be no life. We need to preserve every bit of open space where we can, to promote biodiversity.”

In response, Mayor cllr Adrienne Westbrook agreed to stop the use of Roundup weedkiller in the yard and described the idea for a green spaces management plan as ‘excellent’.

“We have asked the caretakers not to use Roundup until it can be discussed at a future meeting,” said cllr Westbrook.

“I think the idea of a green spaces management plan is an excellent idea. This is the first year we are doing things, so we will get things right, and we will get things wrong. So we have to rely on people coming to talk to us and telling us better ways to do things – we’re not pretending that we are perfect at this.”

The use of weedkiller and the idea for a green spaces management plan will be discussed at the council’s asset management meeting on Monday 9th July.