• ISLINGTON Council declared a climate emergency in June 2019.

Decisions made before that declaration that can still be changed seem not to be under re-examination in the net zero carbon challenge.

How seriously is the council in fact taking the climate and ecological emergency, or the national air pollution crisis that is killing so many, particular in cities?

Illegal levels of air pollution (NOx) are found throughout 60 per cent of our borough, Highbury Corner being particularly badly hit. This very busy commercial and residential area needs more green space and not less.

Having considerably thinned out the arboretum on “Highbury island”, the council now intends to cut down seven mature and healthy trees from the roadside mini-forest that screens the Dixon Clark Court estate from the busy A1.

Within the single square kilometre centred on the primary school located next to these trees, it is estimated (using ONS figures) that vegetation removes 225kg of pollutants from the air every year.

Allowing this development to proceed according to the existing plan will lead to a further reduction of crucial green space and, particularly during the building work, increase the exposure to air pollution of residents and schoolchildren.

The intention is to build much-needed social and affordable housing, in the grounds of the Dixon Clark Court estate.

On closer examination the social and affordable housing, located largely on old car parking and garage space, will not result in the tree-screen being damaged.

What will destroy these seven trees is the projected six-storey private block, entirely devoid of social or affordable housing, that the council has also granted permission for.

The further the private block is distanced from the “council housing”, the higher its value will be. Thus the financing model is strongly linked to social exclusion, very much against council policy, and also leads directly to the placing of the block on top of these seven trees.

In a climate and ecological emergency, and knowing that 25 Londoners a day are dying prematurely as a result of air pollution, we are demanding the council re-plan this development with a view to either dropping the private block (and securing the finance for the social and affordable housing elsewhere) or moving it, preferably in the direction of integrating it with the other housing, so these trees and their green space can be saved.

The council must surely, in every decision they make from now, on show that climate, ecology and pollution matters are being given far more weight than before and that previous decisions will be looked at again in the light of this.

These trees are clearly a case in point and we hope you would support this by writing to councillors and copying in the executive member for housing and development, at diarmaid.ward@islington.gov.uk.

CONOR MCHUGH
Stop Tree Slaughter at Highbury Corner

HELENA FARSTAD
Islington Clean Air Parents