Page 4 - Natural World Winter 2017
P. 4
UK NEWS
Gwent Levels in mortal danger NEIL ALDRIDGE
Gwent Wildlife Trust opposes six-lane motorway over internationally important wetland
Gwent Wildlife Trust (GWT) has of Special Scientific Interest, a “The Gwent Levels is Wales’ very
given its final evidence to the Special Area of Conservation and a own Amazon rainforest and should
Public Inquiry into a new National Nature Reserve. All would be protected now and for future
motorway being built over a be destroyed or badly a ected. generations,” said GWT Chief
precious ancient wetland. Executive Ian Rappel.
“The proposal is a direct attack on
The Trust hopes it can halt Welsh nature, biodiversity and protected The enquiry is expected to run
Government plans for a six-lane landscape and fails every test of until the end of the year before it
motorway across 15 miles of the sustainability,” said transport expert produces a verdict. Welsh Minister
Gwent Levels, which contain a Prof. John Whitelegg of Liverpool Ken Skates will decide the fate of
wealth of rare wildlife, eight Sites John Moores University. the Levels in 2018.
TgHLwcEJSEaeomGAnVitnVpWEwaoELiiulEgdSrnNl!i:fTe. One of the reens,
or ditches, that
org
crisscross the Levels
Second wave of water voles for Kielder
Project o cer Following the successful
Graham Holyoak introduction of more than 300
with a soon-to-be water voles in June, the Kielder
released water vole Water Vole Partnership has
released another 255 animals into
LYLE MCCALMOT the Kielder Water and Forest Park
area of Northumberland.
Voles were lost from the area 30
years ago, and the reintroduction,
using animals from the Pennines,
aims eventually to restore them to
the west of the county.
The partnership includes
Northumberland Wildlife Trust,
Forestry Commission and Tyne
Rivers Trust, with a £421,000 grant
from the Heritage Lottery Fund.
4 NATURAL WORLD WINTER 2017
