From southeast England to California, decommissioned oil refineries are being reclaimed by nature. Now communities are campaigning to protect themAbandoned oil refineries are emerging as unlikely havens for wildlife in the UK and across the pond in California, US, becoming sanctuaries for thousands of insects, birds, plants and other species. Canvey Wick on the Thames estuary in Essex, UK, was plastered in silt and asphalt in the 1970s, turning once wildlife-rich grazing marshes into a barren industrial wasteland. Today it is managed by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) alongside partners at Buglife and the Land Trust, which owns Canvey Wick. More than 3,200 species have been recorded at the site – “a fantastic success,” said Canvey Wick Nature Reserve manager, Marc Outten.