The Glaven Valley Benefice WIVETON PARISH COUNCIL
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Wiveton Parish Council Report

Wiveton Downs is part of Blakeney Esker and is managed jointly by Wiveton Parish Council and Norfolk County Council and it is a designated SSSi. Not, as one might think, for its wildlife interest, but because of its geological significance. The Esker was created during the Quaternary period by melt water from glaciers forming a tunnel beneath the ice and carrying large quantities of sand, gravel and flint which the glaciers had scraped out. When the glaciers retreated these tubes of sediment were left behind leaving the features visible today.

The southern end of the Esker (Wiveton Downs) represents one of the very best examples of an Esker formation to be seen anywhere and this is the reason for its SSSi designation, to ensure that it remains as a distinct geological landscape feature.

In recent years a problem has arisen, namely that of an increasing number of dog walkers who do not clear up after their pets. For a long time now, a group of altruistic Wiveton ladies have tried to clear some of this up when they walk their own dogs, but the problem has now reached a scale that is far beyond them and where the actual shape of the Esker could be threatened by the amount of it.

There is a continuing difference of opinion between Wiveton PC and NCC over how the site should look - we would like to see it uncluttered and as wild and natural looking as possible - they eagerly take up any excuse to adorn it with signs and garden furniture. This increasing accretion of dog's excrement offers yet another excuse for them to do this, by adding even more clutter in the form of ugly and conspicuous dog litter bins, which we do not want, and which the people who habitually leave their dogs mess behind will probably not use anyway, in any case who would empty them? I suspect that in no time at all they would be overflowing with every kind of rubbish that visitors to the Downs could not be bothered to take home.

This situation cannot be entirely blamed on visitors to the area as many people from surrounding villages use the Downs. If you are one of these, here's a tip. Take a plastic bag with you on your walk (nappy bags are ideal and cheap) and when your dog fouls the path put the bag over your hand and pick up the offending result, pull the bag back over your hand enclosing the excrement. It can then be easily carried home and disposed of. This may seem like something you would find unpleasant to do but it is not nearly as offensive or unpleasant as the alternative left for unsuspecting walkers.

Godfrey Sayers