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This is the September 2026 edition of the Save Lea Marshes Newsletter. Now officially in Autumn, we can appreciate how unusual the weather has been in recent months, with just a few patches of green emerging from the desert-like landscapes of the parks and marshes, and how all of us must work and do what we can towards helping to save our planet in whatever ways we can.

FUTURE OF WALTHAM FOREST EVENT, ST. JAMES PARK

Future of Waltham Forest Event in St. James Park

On 26 September, the three ward councillors of St James Park, Walthamstow - David Berry, Anna Rose Kerr and Martin Edbor - organised an event as part of the "Future of Waltham Forest initiative", to look at the future of St. James Park and help shape the future of green spaces and green infrastructure in the borough. Save Lea Marshes took part in the event and had the pleasure of reconnecting with previous contacts such as Transition Waltham Forest (who organise the Earth Day events) and the Hornbeam Cafe, and also meeting new groups including Waltham Forest Food Growers Network as well as local residents. It was a lovely blue-sky day and any apologies for the lack of the Bouncy Castle due to technical difficulties were quickly forgotten with the other crafts and activities on offer, including suggesting ideas on how to make the park greener and better. It was a joy to see children enjoying themselves at the stalls and taking part in the "Who could collect the most litter" competition. A very positive start to the new Green-led Council getting out there and finding out what the community needs.

RIGHTS OF THE RIVER LEA

Regular readers of this newsletter will know that as well as, being alert to the land issues of the marshes area, SLM also take a keen interest in the state of the river. Our work so far has included: regular water testing, working with others in the Lea Guardians group, and our recent Pilgrimage of the River Lea walking from the source to the mouth of the river. We are now following up with further work, and collaborating with other groups, individuals and Hackney Council to try and establish Rights for the River Lea. It's too early to go into fuller details at the moment but we will be reporting back on progress. Getting rights for a river is all about caring for the precious ecosystem and working for improvement as well as recognising the important role rivers and waterways play in our lives.

CAMPAIGN TO SAVE ANCIENT WOODLAND

The Canopy Coalition (see https://www.canopy.org.uk), are asking people to help save Oaken Wood, one of the UK's remaining ancient woodlands. The UK has only 2.5-4% of ancient woodlands surviving and it would be a tragedy if this wood were lost to the threat of quarrying. There is just one week left to save this wood by submitting your objections to mailto://mwlp@kent.gov.uk.

RSPB INTERACTIVE MAP

The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds has launched an interactive map to help people find their nearest protected areas and also, importantly, to find out what safeguards these areas have. Identifying 7,500 protected sites, consisting of woodland, meadow and cliff environments, the map can be found at https://www.rspb.org.uk/whats-happening/protected-areas?mac=PAIAJC4020&utm_sources=notes_on_nature20260919&utm_medium=email.

FURTHER PLANNING THREATS

Last year many people came together to campaign against aspects of the Planning and Infrastructure Act. Some progress was made but, as the Bats Conservation Trust point out, there are further threats on the horizon with the Government proposing further changes to planning, and proposing two new Bills: the Energy Independence Bill and the Nuclear Regulations Bill. In their September bulletin, the Bats Conservation Trust also point out that plans to expand permitted developments could put nature at greater risk. See https://www.batsconservation.org.uk. This is very contrary to what the Green Party is doing via its Nature's Rights Bill currently proceeding through the House of Lords, which seeks to put nature's rights on an even footing with human rights in law.

BOOK NOOK

Our recommended book this month is A Folk History of Land Rights, Enclosure and Resistance, by Leah Gordon and Stephen Ellcock with contributions by Annabel Edwards. It is published in hardback and costs around £21.99. Leah Gordon describes her journey as a squatter throughout London, finally ending up in Hackney, where she became a Punk musician and an activist against the M11, so it is a personal memoir of the 1980s and 1990s as well as being a broader guide to rights.