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Old 11-01-2007, 07:38 PM
Benacre's Avatar
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Default Please stop the gassing pf Moles

I know some of you would like to see an end to Moles but please read this post and try to help me.

Moles are being gassed in Wells next the sea Norfolk because the council is worried a child will trip over the Hills and hurt themselves. Here is my letter to the Eastern Daily Press in response.
Norfolk news from EDP24, your local newspaper

www.edp24.co.uk

Lets get a petition orgainised send your complaint to edpletters@archant.co.uk

Even better petition the town clerk.
clerk@wellstowncouncil.org.uk

My letter to the editor.
I was amazed and amused by the news story that Moles were being gassed in
Wells next the Sea because the children could trip over the hills and hurt
themselves.
What rubbish. Mole hills produce soft earth on their hills and they can be
raked away quite easily by someone and used to improve the soil.
Wells is a mecca for birdwatchers and Nature lovers I expect a lot of local
opposition on this.
Why not get the petty criminals to rake off the earth but dont kill the
moles for killing sake.

Thanks in advance
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Old 11-01-2007, 07:56 PM
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Nicely put Benacre, it seems such a shame when Health and Safety get let loose - perhaps the council is scared of being sued!

Hope your letter has some effect - how about copying it to other nationwide organisations - can't think of particular ones at the mo, but Private Eye comes to mind. Sometimes ridicule works best.
I'm sure the local school children would love to go and watch the gassing of small furry creatures - could you get your local primary schools on the case? Get the local media down to film the event.

As Mr MB just said, shall we prosecute the council because a hedgehog stuck it's quills into our car tyre? (or something like that).

Good luck
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Last edited by madderbat; 11-01-2007 at 07:57 PM.
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Old 11-01-2007, 08:46 PM
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maybe we should rake up the Grass and put down cushions instead in case children fall over on that.
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Old 11-01-2007, 09:04 PM
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Health and safety***

A nearby cemetary looks like a bomb has hit it because the council have "dismantled" the monuments and left them lying on the ground. Not just the big angel things but simple headstones.

The reason - children playing may tip one over and hurt themselves.

What are children doing being allowed to play in a graveyard????

The pity is that the council did not give anyone any notice that they were going to remove headstones, some of which were less than a year old.
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Old 11-01-2007, 09:12 PM
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Surely this is desecration of a sancurious site. It seems that the vandals always win. Our local park filled in all the ponds and cleared away all the trees because of Nefarious characters and vandals destroying the water quality the Vandals have won is this not what they want to do?
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Old 11-01-2007, 10:00 PM
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Sadly a lot of things these days are being governed by "health and safety". What a shame. Dexterdog
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Old 11-01-2007, 10:47 PM
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The worlds gone mad, and we're not allowed to say so because it would not be politically correct. I think this is because things are seen as L wing policy or R wing policy. I have no truc with any of that. If the policy is madness, it's madness. It doesn't matter what direction it's coming from.
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Old 11-01-2007, 11:19 PM
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Well said Alice. I used to think it was just me, and wondered if I was on the wrong planet, now I wonder how I can kick the idiots off, and which planet they think they are on.
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Old 12-01-2007, 06:16 PM
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First of all may I say I have never been to Wells and I am not familiar with it's topography.

I have tried, but I can't find the offending article on the link either?

Killing animals for the sake of killing goes against the grain for me.

But...............There are circumstances when irradication of moles is deemed acceptable. All sport venues including Golf, Horseracing and football are mole free! Can you imagine a Premiership football game with Thiery Henry about to score a goal when he trips over a mole hill? Or Tiger woods whacking a ball down a fairway only to have it be lost in a mole heap?
Without trivialising it, I think we can agree that mole hills are not acceptable at any grass sporting venue! How many gardeners allow them to prosper on there prize lawn?

I don't know about Wells, but the coastal walks around here are picturesque and often go along the edge of the cliffs. An area wide enough for the walk will have the grass cut by the local council to keep it tidy and safe.
Mole hills are unsightly and dangerous, especially when small children are walking (or invariably, running) next to dangerous cliffs.
Not only the mole hills but the moles burrows are dangerous, and it is quite easy to turn an ankle (or even loose your foot) in a run, or trip and fall. The cylinder cutters used in these areas cannot just be driven through the molehills without causing damage to the machines. As anyone will know, knock over a mole hill and a mess ensues, followed by another mole hill the following night!!

Moles used to be killed by a gamekeeper using strychnine Hydrocloride impregnated worms, but rightly enough this has now been banned. Traps could not be layed in an area that is accessed by the general public in case kids poked the traps and got trapped themselves.
The accepted humane way to get rid of moles is to drop Aluminium Phosphide pellets into the runs which react with moisture and give off Phosphine gas, commonly referred to, as gassing

I would imagine that most councils are cash strapped and would not be gassing the moles unless it was absolutely necessary, so maybe we shouldn't judge them too harshly?

Having said all the above, I would still like to see the original newspaper article to give an informed opinion!
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Old 12-01-2007, 07:25 PM
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Unfortunatly the article does not appear on the EDP Website.
Benacre
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