Crossness Nature Reserve is a 25.5 hectarelocal nature reserve inCrossness in theLondon Borough of Bexley.[1][2] It is part of theErith MarshesSite of Metropolitan Importance for Nature Conservation.[3] The site is adjacent toCrossness Sewage Treatment Works; the works form the reserve's western boundary. It was created under a planning condition (Section 106 agreement) in 1994 and is owned and managed byThames Water.[1][4][5][6] At the northern edge of the reserve is a waste management facility owned and operated byCory.
Crossness is part of the original Thames floodplain calledErith Marshes.[7][8] It is one of the few remaining areas of grazing marsh in London, and it has the largestreedbeds inBexley. It also has ponds and ditches, and areas of scrub and rough grassland.[9] It is a major site forwater voles, and 130 species of birds have been recorded, together with some rare invertebrates, including five species of water beetles and one of the UK's rarest wildbumblebee species, theShrill Carder bee.[10] Scarce plants includeBorrer's saltmarsh grass andfrog rush, a species that was previously thought to be extinct inKent.[1][8][11]
There are footpaths through the eastern part of the site, accessed from Norman Road and Eastern Way, but the western part is closed to the public.
Between 2005 and 2011 theBelvedere Green Links project saw £1,000,000 spent on restoringErith southern marsh and Crossness Nature Reserve, including the stable block.[12] This was funded by theHomes & Communities Agency (HCA), theEuropean Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and theGreater London Authority (GLA).Bexley Borough Council were key stakeholders.[13]
In the early 2020s,Cory announced plans to create one of Europe's largestCarbon Capture and Storage (CCS) facilities inBelvedere, on a site including 11.7% of the 25.5 hectares of land at Crossness Nature Reserve.[14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23] In December 2023, a campaign group (Save Crossness Nature Reserve) and petition was established to oppose the development.[24][25] The petition generated 2,790 signatures. In June 2024, the campaign group sought to raise £8000 to fight the plans.[26][27]