Forge Mill Lake II

Well. It didn't take long.

A couple of days, in fact, was all it took to 're-profile' the north island.

A case of now you see it - now you don't.

What a terrible waste of nature. 25 years in the growing thrown away in 2 days at the whim of Sandwell and the Environment Agency.

And all for some ridiculouly claimed benefit for birds which, I guess, most of Sandwell Council wouldn't recognise if they fell over them.

I say 'claimed' because it just has to be a nonsense. How, one asks oneself, did ground nesting birds, such as lapwings, possibly manage this last umpteen hundred years without Sandwell and the Environment Agency 're-profiling' islands for them?

The answer is 'perfectly well, thank you.'

So who do Sandwell and the Environment Agency think they are kidding?

Well us, appparently. They are certainly no fools themselves. In fact, I think that this is all part of a grand job creation scheme which Sandwell have slipped in over the last 6 or 7 years at Sandwell Valley.

I don't know how Sandwell square this, with their announcement this week that another 1,000 jobs have got to go because they can't afford them.

Maybe Unison, well known for its commitment to lapwings, understands, and can explain in ways which the ordinary man can understand.

And another thing.

The Environment Agency.

Is it somehow related to Sandwell? Or are they just bedfellows of kindred spirit?

I must research this because I am pretty sure that the Environment Agency was implicated in the farcical additional run-off at Sandwell (see my post 14th December, 2009). I didn't photograph the notice that was displayed at that time so I can't prove it. If I am wrong, I apologise in advance - but I think I'm right!

If I am right, then the run-off and the 're-profiled' island would seem to indicate a penchant of Sandwell and the Environment Agency for spending money unnecessarily on daft and environmentally damaging projects.

Come on Mr Cameron, let's see what you're made of.

Why don't you scrap Sandwell and the Environment Agency and see if anybody notices?