A photo showing the scarification work being undertaken in Greenwich Park for the London 2012 cross country event. Read about “acid grass” here and here on the Greenwich Phantom’s blog and on the Greenwich.co.uk forum.
There’s more photos in the “Greenwich _Park” photostream on Flickr.com
Indigo says
Ok, folks, what do you think are the chances of that sapling still being there in 2013? Zip, I should imagine, The Royal Parks’ assurance notwithstanding (that no trees will be felled as part of the x-country course preparation). LOCOG vandals.
Kate says
Scarification is exactly the right word…
Indigo says
The amenity societies are very quiet. Let’s hear from you – Greenwich Society, Blackheath Society, Westcombe Society, “Friends” of Greenwich Park – you are on LOCOG’s advisory group, you have given your blessing to LOCOG starting the cross-country course preparation before discharging the whole of planning condition 1. This appalling damage is happening because you let it.
The company in charge of preparing the course is the Sports Turf Institute
http://www.stri.co.uk
– that’s right, SPORTS TURF, whose professional skills and expertise are all in preparing and managing golf links. Not fragile, unique, bio-diverse, World Heritage Sites. I can easily imagine that Lee Penrose (STRI)
http://www.stri.co.uk/en/about-stri/stri-staff/ecology/lee-penrose/
just told the workmen to keep “scarifying” until there was nothing left. Indeed, it occurs to me to ask: do these workmen with their rakes have any relevant park management qualifications at all, or did LOCOG/STRI bring in some people from the local Job Centre.