Following the wildlife deaths caused by work at Preston Parks Rotunda Pond, a spokesman for Brighton and Hove City Council stated, “We’ll set up a temporary pond and volunteers and staff will be out looking for newts and rescuing them” (The Argus, March 6).

With the work still incomplete I visited the park last weekend to see for myself.

I was shocked and dismayed to find the “temporary pond” was little more than a tiny and unfenced puddle of muddy water in a tarpaulin (pictured right).

On a blazing hot day – obviously not good for any stranded amphibians – the only people to be seen by this so-called “temporary pond” were children fishing out any creature they could find and dog owners allowing their animals to career through it.

Where were the “staff and volunteers?”. Why is this area not fenced off? While fishing beer bottles and other debris out of the water, I noticed there wasn’t even any oxygenating weed in it. Unbelievable.

I returned on Monday hoping for some positive activity but was disappointed to find more uncleared debris from the weekend.

It is obvious that nobody is keeping a close eye on the poor creatures suffering and dying due to prolonged and badly timed work at the pond.

This goes beyond inadequate care. This is outright negligence by all concerned. Yet, as usual, nobody is being held to account.

What a joke that the council is seeking “biosphere status” (whatever that means) when it has repeatedly shown at Preston Park that it cannot even cope with looking after little ponds.

Chris Natural, Tilbury Place, Brighton