R. (on the application of Boggis and Easton Bavents Conservation) v Natural England (Queen's Bench Division, Administrative Court, Blair J., December 5, 2008) [2008] EWHC 2954 (Admin)

摘要

This was a claim for judicial review of the decision to notify and subsequently confirm part only of the Pakefield to Easton Bavents site of special scientific interest (SSSI). The part in question was in the Easton Bavents part of the site, which comprised about one kilometre of the 12-kilometre stretch of coastline within the SSSI. There was no challenge to the validity of the SSSI as it applied to the rest of the site. The disputed area of land was by the North Sea in Suffolk. At this point the coast consisted of low cliffs and the sedimentary nature of the soil gave little protection against the tides. Since 1640, the cliffs had retreated over three-and-a-half kilometres and the process continued at the rate of a few metres a year. The sediment was rich in fossils from the Pleistocene era and along the coast these fossils were exposed by erosion. The defendant was Natural England (previously English Nature).