Mud bath Meadows swamped by events

Published on Thursday 26 June 2008 10:40

THERE were fresh demands today to protect the Meadows from further damage amid claims two high-profile events have left parts of the beauty spot looking like a boggy mess.

Campaigners claim city leaders have failed to listen to their concerns from recent years by agreeing to stage the events attracting thousands of people like the charity Moonwalk and the recent Taste food festival.

The city council, which is set to undertake a review of how many events are staged on the Meadows, insists any damage will be repaired.

Dr Peng Lee Yap, chairman of Friends of the Meadows, said that, combined with summer showers, the recent events had left parts of the Meadows resembling a dirt track, covered in muddy puddles and large grass-free patches.

The group is calling on the council to put a stop to major events which prevent members of the public using the park.

He said: "This is public ground that has been segregated from a lot of people because with the Taste of Edinburgh only paying people can get in and with the Moonwalk only participants can get into the tent.

"We had a meeting recently and the feeling is that events on the Meadows should be open and free."

Hillary McDowell, of Newington Road, who has lived near the Meadows since the 1970s and walks her dogs along it every evening, had complained to the council prior to this summer's events.

She took part in a consultation on who should be allowed to use the area but now feels ignored.

Ms McDowell said: "It's looking very poor at the moment. I'm not at all happy about the state of the Meadows, first Taste and then the Moonwalk, led to a large amount of land being fenced off for a month.

"It has been covered with metal tracking during growing season, when the grass should have recovering for last year. I was there a couple of days ago and the puddles are so big the crows are taking baths in them.

"The council is officially saying that very little damage has been done, but that's not what's apparent to the rest of us. In some areas there is no grass at all and it is still possible to see where the tracking was down last year."

She added: "Quite a few of us asked for nothing to happen on the Meadows this summer. We were told we would be consulted, but as far as I can see they've not refused a single event. It was a tick-box exercise."

However, the city council does not believe any lasting damage has been done to the Meadows and hopes it will soon be back to its former glory.

A council spokesman said: "We would not expect these events to cause damage that is not repairable and any damage that is caused would be paid for and repaired through a reinstatement bond paid by the event organisers.

"We have also recently laid a plastic surface called 'grasscreet' at an access point to the Meadows to protect the ground when vehicles need to cross the grass."