Hard-hearted council chiefs could have a family of swallows evicted to make way for a £900,000 bridge.
Essex County Council is applying for a special licence to move the feathered squatters which are nesting under Fingringhoe bridge.
The birds and nest, which contains two eggs, are protected by wildlife laws.
But the council has taken the radical step of appealing to Government environment department, Defra, to override the law so the bridge can be demolished.
A spokesman said: "We have applied for a licence from Defra to move the nest but we won't hear from them for another week. Until then we can't do anything at all so we'll have to wait."
Essex Wildlife Trust condemned the move. Director John Hall says it will be impossible to save the eggs if the nest is tampered with.
He said: "There is no chance of moving the nest and the birds. The parents will just desert it. The right thing to do would be to let the birds rear their young and then proceed."
Published Friday July 2, 2004
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