All Opinions Are Valid - HS2 Unplugged: Red-Rated Reality

The People's Countryside Environmental Debate Podcast

No waffle in this episode, we get straight into the listener questions, the first of which today is from Tess, in Stranrear, Scotland - “How damaging do you feel dismissing someone's opinion that you don’t like can be?”

Stuart emphasises that dismissing someone’s opinion is detrimental, limiting both yourself and the person you’re conversing with. Active listening fosters better understanding. He encourages us to listen to everyone and be open to challenging their and our own viewpoints.

William agrees, highlighting the danger of stereotyping. Forming quick judgments prevents us from truly hearing others. He notes that people may avoid listening out of fear they’ll agree. Stuart warns against falling into this habitual trap.

Tom, from Eastney, Portsmouth, England asks todays second question - “Wildlife campaigners are claiming huge amounts of countryside has been unnecessarily lost after the HS2 fast rail link was classed by a watchdog as, “unachievable”. The Infrastructure And Projects Authority (IPA) has given the programme a ‘red’ rating. After analysing plans for the construction of the first two phases from London to Birmingham and then onto Crewe in Cheshire, the official infrastructure watchdog, said in its view the project was undeliverable, in its current form. Estelle Bailey the Chief Executive of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust said “The vast project has been mismanaged from the start. It's taken a wrecking ball to nature”. In February 2023 the Wildlife Trusts claimed HS2 Limited “Made fundamental flaws in the way it assessed the value of nature along the construction path”. Estelle Bailey said further “It made huge errors in its calculations, undervaluing natural habitats and over-valuing the impacts of its compensation measure. If the project is abandoned then huge amounts of nature will have been lost, for nothing. We need to learn from this debacle. We’re living through a climate crisis and we can’t afford to make these costly mistakes”. Chap’s, what are your thoughts on this? I know you’ve done numerous episodes on HS2 as I’ve been quietly listening for a number of years now, but please revisit. Thanks”.

William criticises the management of the HS2 project, considering it a debacle. Despite being pro-HS2 due to the outdated Victorian-era rail routes, he acknowledges the mismanagement. Even though nature is always impacted by big projects, stopping the project now would mean nature’s loss has been potentially in vain, especially during the climate crisis. William emphasises the need for caution, recognizing human fallibility. He also highlights the overcrowded trains and the necessity of an improved rail system to reduce car usage.

Stuart questions whether HS2 is permanently unachievable and whether large projects can avoid harming nature. He suggests that a point system valuing nature in these project might be impractical.

What do you make of this discussion? Do you have a question that you'd like us to discuss? Let us know by sending an email to ⁠[e-mail]

We like to give you an ad free experience. We also like our audience to be relatively small and engaged, we’re not after numbers.

This podcast's overall themes are nature, philosophy, climate, the human condition, sustainability, and social justice.

Sign the Petition - Improve The Oxfordshire Countryside Accessibility For All Disabilities And Abilities: https://www.change.org/p/improve-the-oxfordshire-countryside-accessibility-for-all-disabilities-and-abilities

Fundraiser For An Extreme 8 All-terrain Wheelchair: https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/wildmanonwheels

Help us to spread the impact of the podcast by sharing this link with 5 friends ⁠https://podfollow.com/the-peoples-countryside-environmental-debate-podcast/view⁠ , support our work through Patreon ⁠https://www.patreon.com/thepeoplescountryside⁠. Find out all about the podcast via this one simple link: ⁠https://linktr.ee/thepeoplescountryside