The Original Severn Bridge

We sometimes speak about The Severn Bridge and the Second Severn Crossing (I think they've got some fluffy new names now), but they came long after the original Severn Bridge. After having a boys day yesterday I went for a walk with Janet along the Severn Way footpath running alongside the river Severn and here is the remains for the old bridge. A rather knackered Janet can just about be spotted at the foot of the tower, saying "hurry up!"

The Severn Bridge spanned the river at Sharpness and Lydney, carrying rail freight, mainly coal from the Forest of Dean 1.2 miles across the river to the docks, and comprised twenty two spans of iron bridgework and built in the 1870's. In 1960 two canal barges carrying coal and oil struck the bridge, damaging both a gas main and an HV electrical cable. The resultant explosion left a bit of a gap. It was never healed.

In other news, you'll recall I wrote a 2300 word Objection to a development application, for use in Tuesday's Council meeting. Today on the BBC we learned that hedgehogs are now Red Listed as vulnerable to extinction, and further reading through the application highlights this paragraph:

The majority of suitable habitats for hedgehogs including the woodland blocks and hedgerow bases are being retained within the proposed development. There is however potential for killing or injury of individuals during the vegetation clearance required to facilitate the spine road route which is considered to be a temporary short-term adverse effect of non-significant at a site level (minor adverse).

The ethics of this are sickening. Hedgehogs are already protected but now become as important to protect as Great Crested Newts. Charfield Parish Council expressed a Climate and Ecological Emergency in May 2019, and I can see a new specific Objection going in. I have a lot more reading to do...