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Restore wetlands, don’t destroy them

From the mudflats and coastal meadows of Hampshire to the estuary of the Humber, some of our best-loved wetlands are under threat.

As it stands, current government planning proposals will downgrade hard-won environmental protections and leave some of our most nature-rich habitats at risk of being concreted over.

These include Ramsar-designated wetlands – the best of the best – home to rare migratory waterbirds and supposedly protected under international law.

Wetlands are vital, irreplaceable habitats that buffer us from floods, boost our moods, purify our water and provide a safe haven for 40% of the world’s wildlife. They provide essential services to people and the economy – but once they’re gone, they’re gone.

We’ve already lost 75% of our wetlands in the last 300 years. As a wondrous solution to so many of the challenges we face, we should be restoring wetlands – not destroying them.

We’re calling on MPs across the political spectrum to speak up for these superpowered habitats and ensure new planning rules bring us more wetlands for more people, not less. After all, the evidence is clear – nature is the builder of healthy communities, not the blocker.

Now is the time for the government to hear us loud and clear. Can you join us in speaking out?

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  • Wetlands are super-powered solutions to the problems our world faces. These nature-bursting, flood-busting, mood-boosting, water-purifying habitats are closer than you think: the pond in your back garden, the river running through your city, your local beach, lake, or boggy field that dries in high summer.
  • Ramsar-designated wetlands are wetlands that are protected under the 1971 Ramsar Convention – a 50-year old international agreement to preserve these precious habitats around the world. There are 71 Ramsar-designated wetlands in England.
  • In its current form, the Labour government’s proposed Planning and Infrastructure Bill puts more than 5,000 irreplaceable habitats at risk in England. These include Ramsar-designated wetland sites such as the Wash in Norfolk, one of the most important and dynamic wetlands for wildlife across the continent.   
  • We’ve already lost 75% of the UK’s wetlands in the last 300 years. The few remaining are now under major threat from the government’s planning changes, which risk sending nature into freefall. The current measures will have the effect of downgrading environmental protections, as confirmed by the government’s own environmental watchdog.  
  • In a changing world, blue spaces like wetlands will be essential to cooling our towns and cities, bringing people closer to nature and reversing nature’s decline. These superpowered habitats are society’s critical infrastructure, not blockers to development. 
  • The government is setting up a misleading narrative of people versus nature, but it doesn’t have to be this way. It’s perfectly possible to create communities that are more equal, rich in nature and provide places for both people and wildlife to call home. In fact, that’s what people want. 
  • As the voice for wetlands, we’re working with people and partners across the sector to challenge these proposals and call on the government to restore wetlands, not destroy them.

Restore wetlands, don’t destroy them

Email your MP about the Planning Bill

Enter your details below to ask your MP to speak up for wetlands.

Email your MP about the Planning Bill

Government plans to water down environmental protections leave wetlands across the country at risk. Enter your details below to ask your MP to speak up.

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What's going on?

From the mudflats and coastal meadows of Hampshire to the estuary of the Humber, some of our best-loved wetlands are under threat.

As it stands, current government planning proposals will downgrade hard-won environmental protections and leave some of our most nature-rich habitats at risk of being concreted over.

These include Ramsar-designated wetlands – the best of the best –home to rare migratory waterbirds and supposedly protected under international law.

Wetlands are vital, irreplaceable habitats that buffer us from floods, boost our moods, purify our water and provide a safe haven for 40% of the world’s wildlife. They provide essential services to people and the economy – but once they’re gone, they’re gone.

We’ve already lost 75% of our wetlands in the last 300 years. As a wondrous solution to so many of the challenges we face, we should be restoring wetlands – not destroying them.

We’re calling on MPs across the political spectrum to speak up for these superpowered habitats and ensure new planning rules bring us more wetlands for more people, not less. After all, the evidence is clear – nature is the builder of healthy communities, not the blocker.

Now is the time for the government to hear us loud and clear. Can you join us in speaking out?

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