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Southend-on-Sea, Essex, is the county's most populous area, with more people living in the borough than anywhere else, but it's a different story when you go to one of its most easterly points. Once you pass Shoeburyness, the area becomes almost entirely uninhabited. A series of islands, including Foulness Island and Wallasea Island, are situated here. They're mostly marshy, boggy areas, but a few people still live there. A number of these islands are or have been owned by the government's Ministry of Defence, who use this area for a variety of purposes, including as a
shooting range. One of these islands is Potton Island. This island is mostly uninhabited, separated from the mainland by a thin creek only navigable via a small bridge which leads to the village of Great Wakering.
In the 1800s, it was used as farmland until a major flood left the island abandoned. It was restored in the 1940s, and fell under the control of the Ministry of Defence in the 1950s before being turned back into a space for
pasture and farmland. Documents released in 2005, after decades of secrecy, outlined areas the British government had earmarked for dumping nuclear waste in the 1980s and 1990s. Whilst any dumping would have been done in
managed and safe ways, it's still concerning to know that areas across Britain were being earmarked as graves for radioactive waste. Waste could have potentially been buried on Potton Island, and pedestrian access onto
it possibly restricted completely. Southend Borough Council reportedly had no idea that Potton Island was on the government's list of potential dumping locations, and were shocked when they found out it was on the
shortlist. Essex Live 31st July 2021 https://www.essexlive.news/whats-on/classified-plans-use-essex-island-5713965
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