First it was newts, then bats… now it’s snails.

admin
, 09 October 2025
First it was newts, then bats… now it’s snails.
© Francisco Welter Schultes CC BY-SA 2.5, Derek Middleton and Hugh Clark

By Henri Brocklebank

Director of Conservation

How did these species become the unlikely poster children of an anti-growth narrative?

Yesterday, The Guardian ran a headline quoting Rachel Reeves, suggesting that 20,000 homes in Sussex were being held up due to “some snails that are a protected species or something.” This kind of framing is not just misleading, it’s damaging.

In the face of mounting pressure to deliver growth, we must challenge the narrative that pits nature against progress. Suggesting that environmental protections are petty obstacles to development fuels division and places undue strain on the environmental NGO sector. It implies that we are anti-growth, small-minded, and obstructive, when in reality, we are advocating for the very foundations of a sustainable future.

We constantly push back against this false dichotomy. A healthy, functioning natural environment is not a luxury, it’s essential to economic resilience, public health, and wellbeing. Across sectors, it’s increasingly recognised that nature is not the barrier to growth. If anything, short-sighted decisions are.

So what’s the real story behind the “snail vs. 20,000 homes” headline?

In 2021, Natural England raised concerns that groundwater abstraction in the Sussex North Water Supply Zone — covering an area in Horsham, Crawley, Mid Sussex, and Chichester districts and boroughs — could be harming biodiversity in internationally protected sites. Water supplied by Southern Water in this zone is hydrologically linked to the Arun Valley, a designated Special Protection Area (SPA), Special Area of Conservation (SAC), and Ramsar site. These wetlands support rare birds, invertebrates and aquatic plants, all of which depend on a healthy water system.

The snail mentioned by Reeves is simply one indicator of the ecological health of the Arun Valley. It’s not the villain, it’s the canary in the coal mine.

Natural England’s response introduced the concept of water neutrality ensuring that new developments do not increase overall water consumption. This was a new and complex requirement, and as with any innovation, it took time to implement. Unfortunately, this delay created fertile ground for the narrative that nature was blocking development.

Fast forward to today: after extensive collaboration between statutory agencies and planning authorities, a new streamlined certification scheme has been launched. Developers can now demonstrate water neutrality either through their own schemes or by contributing to a central certification process.

Sussex Wildlife Trust welcomes approaches that place nature at the heart of decision-making. But we must ask: what does this new scheme mean for the Arun Valley? It clearly aims to avoid making the situation worse but is that enough?

At a time when we are striving to protect 30% of land and sea by 2030, we cannot settle for “not making it worse.” We must actively seek opportunities to improve the resilience and adaptability of our natural environment.

Let’s stop blaming snails and start building smarter.

Leave a comment

Comments

  • Wendy McLellan:

    How relevant are your comments. If only local authorities and property developers could actively work alongside wildlife trusts when decisions are made. Our water resources are so precious and undervalued. If everyone could be encouraged to have a water meter perhaps there would be sufficient for humans and nature alike. We take so much for granted and a change in thinking and values could benefit us all.

    11 Oct 2025 02:27:00

  • David Bates:

    Politicians like to simplify everything as do newspapers. Very few of our politicians have a background in science, especially natural sciences which is why they make such ignorant statements. We live in an era where the ignorant proclaim that they know best and she is a prime example. Those who care about our wildlife must continue to fight their corner.

    11 Oct 2025 15:02:00

  • Tony Whitbread:

    Excellent article, especially the canary in the coal mine analogy. If the coal mine becomes unsafe, you don’t blame the canary! If our water resources are at risk, don’t blame a snail.

    11 Oct 2025 18:32:00

  • Jane Gifford:

    Thank you for that explanation. I saw the headline about the snails but knew it would be more complex than we were being told. What a pity the snails don’t have a good relationship with Reeves!

    12 Oct 2025 19:54:00

  • Christina:

    Thanks for giving us more information and sorry a senior politician is so flippant and ignorant of all the facts

    13 Oct 2025 16:56:00

  • Gabriel Mills:

    “… a protected species or something”—the “or something” says it all, in carefully delivered contempt by Rachel Reeves. This contempt is not just for “a snail you can’t even see” but for all “protected species” as so not worth bothering to find out about, that any facts are also irrelevant to her narrative. Too bad that her “facts” are wrong. Reeves manages in remarkably few words to convey both her contempt for nature as one of the Labour government’s two most important ministers, and why the public does not trust politicians: because they lie with virtual
    impunity.

    20 May 2026 11:28:00

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