Kent county council, led by Reform, voted this month to include Oaken Wood in its mineral sites plan, putting about 40 hectares of the ancient woodland at risk of being quarried for Kentish ragstone. The move does not grant planning permission; the plan still requires government approval, but the council said it identified the site as an essential source of stone for building and restoration projects including the Tower of London and Canterbury cathedral. Oaken Wood is continuously wooded since at least 1600 and is a plantation on an ancient woodland site where sweet chestnut has been managed as coppice for centuries. Campaigners and local Green councillors Allison Sweetman and Rachel Rodwell, supported by campaigner Julie Read and Brontie Ansell of Lawyers for Nature, warn the site supports dormice, nightjars, owls, veteran oaks, bluebells and a mycorrhizal soil seed bank and carbon sink. Opponents say conserving built heritage should not come at the expense of irreplaceable ancient woodland; the council declined to comment. The decision moves the quarry expansion proposal to the next stage of scrutiny and will now be considered by national planning authorities as campaigners prepare to oppose the allocation.
