A Richmond resident has spoken of her concerns about the impact on wildlife caused by works taking place at Ham Polo Club.

Lily Kelly fears that the works at the club, in Petersham Road, could have damage habitats and cause contamination.

Ms Kelly said: "The trees that have been removed were home to owls that could regularly be seen at dusk.

"Other wildlife that can be spotted within the polo club grounds are bats, foxes and badgers which may well have been affected.

Richmond and Twickenham Times:

"This along with the old track surface - which also contains countless rubber and plastic pieces, would surely cause contamination - potentially through seepage into the soil, and contaminated water in the Thames.

"Having closely followed the Thames Landscape Strategy, set up by Sir David Attenborough, I’m dismayed to see this wilful disregard from the polo club for the planning and work of so many."

But the management of the polo club hit back at the accusations, stating that a council inspector had visited the site on Monday (March 9) and were "satisfied that the grounds posed no risk to wildlife".

Managing director Sam Pedder said: "The council carried out an inspection on Monday and were absolutely satisfied that the grounds posed no risk to wildlife.

"They said that they are also confident that the regulatory inspector will see no issue too."

Richmond and Twickenham Times:

Ms Kelly described the scale of the works as including a digger and two dumper trucks working 12-hour shifts since March 8, with a waste pile being around "four meters high and 40 metres long".

She contacted the council about her concerns, prompting Monday's inspection.

A Richmond Council spokesperson said: “Following a report from the member of the public, a council officer visited Ham Polo Club to review the works.

"The works are confirmed as being on private property rather than public land and the works carried out on the hedge or trees do not constitute any breach of regulation.

"We do not believe that the work to remove the surface of a horse track causes any risk to the waterways, however we have referred this to our regulatory services team to consider further”.