20 Feb 2025
There are no signs of the company which seized control of the former Butterfly World site making any effort to restore the land ahead of their imminent evacuation.
The car park at the former tourist attraction has been used for industrial use since it closed its doors in 2015, but must be cleared of all materials by June.
Planning permission for Butterfly World was granted on the condition it was used for horticulture, horticultural training, research, butterfly keeping and for visits by the public, and should the venue ever close it was supposed to be restored to its original state. But restoring the site to a grass field would be disastrous from a wildlife perspective.
Meanwhile, the once beautiful countryside location is now filled with diggers, recovery trucks and hundreds of cars parked up alongside semi-permanent structures in the car park at the 27-acre Green Belt location, allegedly as storage for the London used-car market.
A neighbour of the site said: “ With only four months remaining, it is disappointing to see so little progress in preparation for the company’s exit and ensuring they leave the land as they found it.
“The responsibility to restore the site shouldn’t be an afterthought, and time is quickly running out. What steps are being taken by the council to address this before it is too late?”
A company called Convene Construction applied to have the adjoining land excluded from the Green Belt under the SADC Local Plan Examination in December 2019, but this was rejected by the council.
SADC served two enforcement notices on the site on October 21 2022, which included the requirements for the land to no longer be used for storing vehicles, for the removal of all temporary buildings, fencing and hard surfaces, and the clearance of all materials and waste.
Appeals against the notices by a company called Bud Rescue and Recovery were rejected and the enforcement action upheld with some minor amendments, but the terms gave a nine-month period in which the site must be cleared, restricting SADC from taking any action until June 17.
Malcolm Hull, chair of Butterfly Conservation (Herts & Middx Branch) added: “Butterfly World is an important wildlife site. It was purpose designed and constructed to provide habitat suitable for a wide range of native butterfly and moth species. Before public access was withdrawn, it was home to the largest colony of the rare Small Blue butterfly in Herts. They are still recorded each year around the site perimeter, but the status of the colony can no longer be recorded.
“Restoration of the site should involve removal of the unauthorised buildings and equipment. Importantly the wildflower meadows and semi-natural chalk grasslands should be restored to good condition so that they continue to support rare wildlife.
“SADC should be pro-active and actually enforce the removal of buildings and cessation of the unauthorised use. Too often planning conditions in the district are ignored by applicants and no effective enforcement taken. This is a special highly biodiverse site, much loved by the community and it deserves better care and attention.”
Ultimately questions remain unanswered about the long-term future of the site? Is it still owned by John Breheney, the contractor who carried out the original construction of Butterly World? In the past he was only prepared to sell at a high price and seemed to be hoping to achieve development value. So, is he acting like other strategic landowners and waiting to see how the Local Plan process pans out?
The site wasn’t included in the recently submitted Local Plan, but with SADC having to hit revised housing targets in the years to come, that doesn’t mean it won’t be added into a future iteration.
