Wildlife needs to be able to move around to find food, water and shelter in order to thrive - as humans do. Unfortunately, this isn't always easy so in Blaenau Gwent and Torfaen we are developing 'Natural Networks', resilient ecological networks that create more places for nature that are well managed and better connected within the wider landscape.
This approach:
If you'd like to know a bit more about the Natural Networks approach, please click here
Blaenau Gwent and Torfaen both contain areas of woodland, including ancient woodland (meaning it has been woodland for at least 400 years). Woodlands and trees are under pressure from the impacts of climate change, building projects, road building, diseases and invasive non-native species that are often introduced from neighbouring gardens.
Through projects such as Local Places for Nature and potentially The Woodland Investment Grant, we aim to connect these woodlands through hedge and tree planting, supporting natural regeneration, restoring degraded woodlands and, where appropriate, diversifying the woodland edge.
Current and recent projects include:
Local Places for Nature - ?? Trees have been planted in the last three years through this funding, including individual trees, hedges and orchards (how many across both areas?).
Branching Out - a project being developed in partnership with Torfaen County Borough Council, Bron Afon social housing and Torfaen Climate Ambassadors. Over 30 sites have been identified as having potential for small groups of trees. The next stage is consultation, enabling people to find sites on a map and comment on the proposals.
Spotlight on Sirhowy Hill Community Woodlands
Spotlight on Parc Nant-y-Waun
Grassland networks Across the UK, 97% of grassland habitats have been lost since the 1930s due to building projects, changes in farming practices, inappropriate tree planting and road building. In Blaenau Gwent and Torfaen, we want to restore and create wildflower grassland habitats wherever possible and appropriate. This will help to form a network of grassland sites that will spread out from Local Nature Reserves and other designated wildlife sites, giving nature a chance to recover and making natural spaces more accessible for local communities. Local Places for Nature - restoration of grasslands that have been 'scrubbing over' (that is, where trees and shrubs are encroaching on important grasslands) and changing mowing practices on public land, for instance on roadside verges, public parks and cemeteries. Find out more about how Torfaen County Borough Council has changed their mowing practices here - update the case study - link to map of sites?
Three rivers start in the uplands and bogs of Blaenau Gwent and Torfaen - the Afon Lwyd, Ebbw and Sirhowy. In recent decades, these rivers have recovered from pollution from heavy industry and once again support a wide range of wildlife, including otters, kingfishers and salmon. A section of the Monmouthshire and Brecon canal also runs through Torfaen, providing an important ecological corridor. Dotted through the landscape are numerous ponds and reservoirs that fed industry - many of these have now become refuges for wildlife, supporting amphibians, birds and insects amongst others. Sadly, across the UK, we have been losing wetland habitats and our rivers and canals face different pressures. Ponds are filled in, rivers are polluted by misconnected sewage pipes and leaks from local industry. Climate change is likely to cause more droughts across the UK and reduce water levels, as well as heavy rainfall and flooding that can destroy birds nests. We aim to further restore river corridors and wetland sites, making them even better for wildlife and people.
Blaenau Gwent and Torfaen meet in the uplands. These areas contain a wide range of habitats, including peat, wetland, heath, rocky outcrops and acid grasslands that provide habitat for species such as lapwing, curlew, Silurian moth and adder. You will also find ffridd habitat, defined as the fringe between upland fields and more open mountain habitats, supporting bird species such as ring ouzel yellowhammer and linnet. Acid grassland, with a matrix of heath or bracken, provides sheltered conditions for butterflies and reptiles. Rocky outcrops and tree branches also support important lichens and bryophytes.
These habitats require grazing to avoid over-dominance of bracken and gorse and maintain this rich mosaic of habitats. The uplands of Torfaen and Blaenau Gwent, despite containing peat, is under threat from development, including wind and solar farms, inappropriate grazing levels, wildfires and the impacts of climate change.
Blaenau Gwent and Torfaen both have a rich industrial heritage, including the Blaenavon Industrial Landscape World Heritage Site. The majority of post-industrial sites are undergoing natural regeneration and have become havens for wildlife. Most of the Local Nature Reserves in both county boroughs are located on former mining sites, spoil heaps, disused railway lines and quarries. Despite their past uses, these habitats are surprisingly rich in biodiversity. Post-industrial sites often have varied soil types, drainage and topography that leads to the development of a mosaic of habitats. Generally, these sites were abandoned at some stage and the lack of management has allowed natural processes to occur, providing a refuge for species that have declined in the wider landscape. Despite their ecological value and inclusion as a section 7 protected habitat, these sites are often at risk from development, invasive species, fly-tipping and vandalism, illegal off-roading activity, inappropriate tree planting and levelling coal spoil.
Torfaen and Blaenau Gwent both include urban areas, with most development along the bottom of river valleys. Urban gardens can provide important habitats for a range of wildlife, including hedgehogs, birds and insects. Cemeteries and parks can also support the recovery of local nature with small changes to the way they are managed.
Linear features such as stone walls and hedgerows provide great habitats for a range of species of wildlife as well as helping to physically connect other habitats, particularly grasslands and woodlands. Amphibians and reptiles will shelter in dry stone wall and hedgehogs will use hedgerows to move around in a landscape. Hedges also provide nesting sites for a number of bird species, including robins, sparrows and blackbirds as well as food and shelter for many different types of insect.