§ Sir T. Beamishasked the Secretary of State for Education and Science if he is aware that bulldozing the topsoil and undergrowth on Ditchling Common is damaging the exceptional ecological value of this site of special scientific interest; if he will consult with the Natural Environment Research Council; and if he will make a statement.
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§ Mrs. Shirley WilliamsThe Nature Conservancy (a component body of the Natural Environment Research Council) were informed by the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food that the owners of the rights regarding the soil, the Ditchling Common and Tenantry Down Co., Ltd., had applied for a grant to plough and reseed to grass 50 acres. The most important part of the common, scientifically, lies near the fishpond and, as a result of consultation, the company agreed to exclude from their proposals an area in the vicinity of the fishpond and, further, that another area should remain untreated by chemicals.