NETTING on trees along a road to deter birds and wildlife has been removed following a campaign endorsed by a television presenter – but the hedges have gone too.

Anti-bird netting installed along the A19 in Hambleton has been removed following a campaign to “stop squeezing nature”, shared by environmentalist TV presenter Chris Packham.

However, the hedge itself was also removed as part of construction work in the area.

According to Hambleton council, the planned work was brought forward by Highways England after “listening to concerns”.

The hedge and netting were removed on Saturday, March 14. The gap in the central reservation at the A19 Mount Grace Priory is being closed, which will provide slip roads at the junction for drivers exiting and entering the road, and additional signs are being erected.

Once the works are complete, a replacement hedge will be planted, which will be free of anti-bird netting. Netting was installed on the hedges to prevent birds from nesting, which would result in delayed work.

A spokesperson for Highways England said: “The netting and hedges have now been removed. We take our responsibility for the environmental extremely seriously. We also have to balance that with the safety of people using our roads and as part of a wider safety scheme on the A19, we are removing the existing hedges to improve visibility for drivers.

“We were unable to remove the hedges before nesting season began so we used nets, which were checked daily, to prevent birds nesting and to avoid any delays to this important safety work.

“We will plant new hedges to replace those lost and to maintain wildlife habitats once the construction is completed.”

Simon Bowens, Friends of the Earth’s North-East and Yorkshire campaigner, welcomes the decision to keep new hedges net-free.

He said: “Nature is in bad shape in Britain – we’ve lost half of all farmland birds since 1970.

“The removal and netting of hedgerows isn’t necessarily illegal, but that doesn’t mean it should be done with abandon. There are huge opportunities to enable wildlife to thrive alongside roads and Highways England’s decision to avoid netting will support that.

“Wildlife habitats are precious for good reason and all decisions should be made to support them. We need new laws on the netting of hedgerows to reflect that.”