home
/ the heritage journal
Welcome to the
Heritage Journal
news and views from Heritage Action
If you would like to contribute something, please email us.
Tarmac imploding?
March 24, 2006, 5:02 pm
Judging by some of their recent statements, the trauma of being refused permission to quarry any more of the Thornborough Complex seems to have pushed Tarmac over the edge.
First, we had their consultant claiming the area in question is "nationally interesting and significant" but "not nationally important". A puzzling bit or nitpicking you might think, until you remember that the law says "nationally important" archaeology can't be quarried!
 |
Then their quarry manager Mr Bob Nicholson weighed in with some equally creative use of our wonderful language: "Our proposal actually moves quarrying further away from the henges than our current operation".
Well, sort of Bob, except that 90 per cent of the new area will be just as close as the existing quarry! So it's a case of "pants nearly all on fire" really, isn't it?
|
And what about this: he has claimed that Tarmac's archaeological investigations were more thorough than some that English Heritage did on land "close to Stonehenge" and part of "the Stonehenge World Heritage Site". Ummm, no Bob, three or four times further away from Stonehenge actually, and not part of the Stonehenge World Heritage Site at all. That's the rest of the pants - and the vest as well isn't it?
Finally, Mr Nicholson has attacked campaigner George Chaplin, saying he "is not really bothered about saving the archaeology".
Well! We're surprised! We thought that was what the campaign was about. We can only assume that both English Heritage and North Yorkshire County Council, both of who have come out in favour of saving the archaeology and against quarrying, will soon be attacked in similar vein.
Oh, and Mr Nicholson, you have also announced that George owns Heritage Action. That's news to us! And finally, that he is "not particularly bothered about getting his facts right" - which seems somewhat ironic coming from you.
|
