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Contents of this
edition:
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Giant Puffballs, Trellech (copyright UCEG) |
Towards a Planning Act for Wales |
While England struggles with the ambiguities of the UK Government's draft National Planning Policy Framework and the potential conflicts between growth and localism, the Welsh Government is to review its own planning system. Taking advantage of devolved powers, this process is likely to result in a Planning Bill in 2014 that will clarify and differentiate the planning regime in Wales. It could also result in new requirements or guidance, and those with views on the present system should make sure that they have their say.
However, there appears to be little appetite for substantial change. As in England, a presumption in favour of sustainable development may seem to fit Welsh Government priorities, but providing a clear interpretation of this would be challenging and it is to be hoped that Wales would not want to undermine the present development plan-led approach.
The Local Development Plan (LDP) system in Wales, introduced in 2004, is already different from its equivalent in England, and generally felt to be superior. Monmouthshire has reached the stage of having a Deposit LDP and consultation closed on 18 November 2011. This is the outcome of over four years of plan development, evidence-gathering, consultation and consideration of earlier responses. In this county the unavoidable time and cost of the process, especially the cost of numerous consultants' reports (see them on the Council's website), has resulted in little substantial change in the strategy of the present Unitary Development Plan other than a roll-forward of the allocations of land for housing to meet needs up to 2021. Perhaps the Council should be able to condense this process when the plan is reviewed.
There have already been opportunities to contribute to the choice of strategy and to put forward or resist allocations of new development land; now the plan can only be challenged on the basis that it is not 'sound', a test that seems to rule out many minor changes and make major changes difficult to achieve. It has been claimed that 'sound' means 'adequate' rather than 'optimal', and that the process favours the planning authorities.
New allocations of land for development, some controversial, have already been well-debated, but the Deposit Plan is the first opportunity we have had to see the wording of policies for matters such as urban and wildlife conservation, business development, rural diversification, transport or mineral working. Small changes to these policies are unlikely to be considered relevant to the soundness of the plan, and an earlier chance to contribute suggestions would have been helpful*.
While the scope for early public engagement in Wales's LDP process has been laudable, most people still only react to lines on maps and policy wording. By the time they see these the strategy may be hard to reverse. The process may be a logical progression but does it meet the expectations of the public?
*Despite this understanding of the position, it is noteworthy, and perhaps exceptional, that the Park Authority is proposing a considerable number of 'focused changes' to the Brecon Beacons National Park Deposit LDP.
Dick Cole
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Maintenance work at Nedern Brook |
| Environment Agency Wales has de-silted a 5km stretch of the Nedern Brook close to Caldicot Castle to help reduce long-standing pollution. The work is part of a longer term plan to improve water flow throughout the Brook and should help to prevent pollution from wrongly connected drains 'pooling' in the grounds of Caldicot Castle. The maintenance work included repairing fencing along stretches of the brook to prevent livestock eroding the banks. The Agency will continue to work with Welsh Water and Monmouthshire County Council to identify wrongly connected drains within Caldicot which have been causing pollution to the Nedern Brook in the castle grounds. A year ago the Agency hosted a stall at the Caldicot Town Market and spoke to residents about their drainage. Officers talked to more than 100 people throughout the day and encouraged them to check their drains. Holly Sisley, Usk Team Leader for Environment Agency Wales said she was pleased the most recent work was helping to increase the flow of water in the Nedern Brook. She added: "We urge residents of Caldicot to check their drainage. Anyone needing help should contact us. Our officers are happy to provide advice and guidance. We all need to work together to stamp out the long standing pollution problems of the Nedern Brook." |
The Nedern Brook before work began (above)..... and after (below)  |
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New Grants for Heritage Projects in Monmouthshire |
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Rural communities in Monmouthshire are being encouraged to benefit from an exciting new project being delivered by the Village Alive Trust, in partnership with Monmouthshire County Council and adventa. Funded by the Welsh Government's Rural Development Plan for Wales, the project aims to preserve and enhance historic buildings in targeted conservation areas as well as promoting smaller projects that bring Monmouthshire's rich agricultural and industrial heritage to life. There are two grant schemes available. The 'Bring Your Village Alive' grant scheme will provide grants of up to £40,000 to improve and renovate buildings and sites of historic significance in selected Conservation Areas - Caerwent, Grosmont, Llanarth, Llandenny, Llanover, Llandogo, Llantillio Crossenny, Magor, Mathern, Raglan, St Arvans, Shirenewton, Tintern, Trellech, and Whitebrook. The 'Sense of Roots' grant scheme provides capital grants up to £8,000 for rural heritage projects across Monmouthshire. Jean Prosser, secretary for the Village Alive Trust, said, 'this is a wonderful opportunity for people to come together to achieve lasting improvements which will benefit the whole village through increased attractiveness and access to history and heritage'. The two projects were launched at an event on 3rd November. If you would like more information on the project, please contact Bethan Gibbens, Sense of Roots Officer on 01633 644840. This project has received funding through the Rural Development Plan for Wales 2007-2013 which is funded by the Welsh Government and the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development. |
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Seals in the Severn, Usk and Wye |
Of recent years (1990s to the present time) it has become apparent that, probably as a result of increasing seal numbers generally, an expansion of range has taken place with many more sightings made in the Severn Estuary and tidal reaches of the rivers Usk and Wye.
Most reports simply mention 'seals', without any species clarification, but in my experience sightings made in the lower Severn Estuary, and in the rivers Usk and Wye, are mostly those of the Grey Seal (Halichoerus grypus). However, records from the upper (Gloucestershire) part of the Severn Estuary are said to be those of the Common Seal (Phoca vitulina).
This information comes from two principal sources - a book on the distribution of British mammals (Henry Arnold, 1993), and a recent communication with the records office of the Gloucestershire Naturalists Trust. Other reports of seals (species not stated) in the upper Severn Estuary can be gleaned from the pages of a book by Brian Waters (Severn Tide, Dent, 1947) in which a 'seal' was seen as far up the river as Deerhurst in 1933, another died on the bank of the river at Arlingham while another swam into a lave-net when the intended catch was undoubtedly a Salmon. Such an occurrence was also reported to me by the lave-net fishermen of Caldicot in the 1950s. With regard to the Common Seal specifically, it has been claimed by some that they were breeding in the Severn Estuary off Gwent in the 1950s (see The Cardiff Region, A Survey, Cardiff University of Wales Press, 1960), but this is not accepted by all authorities.
Whatever the case may be it is certain that Grey Seals are now being seen in Gwent waters far more frequently. In June 2001 I saw a Grey Seal in the Severn close to the mouth of the River Wye, and reports from the Wye itself came to me during 2003, 2006, 2010 and 2011. Of these the reports for 2006 stand out because of their number. There were at least four separate reports from three different locations along the river Wye - Piercefield, Llandogo and Redbrook, and also reports from the River Usk - the Moorings at Newport and from Newbridge.
Sifting through the reports and their timings, and also those of my own sightings, it seems that the Grey Seal is most active at the time of the incoming tide, and evidence suggests that these periods of activity coincide with a run of fish up the river with the tidal flow.
During the winter of 2010 - 2011 otters were regularly seen in the River Wye at Llandogo. The sightings were so frequent, and regular that I invited photographer friends to attempt to get some images. First Chris Hatch tried and was successful on only the second visit. I then got in touch with Colin Elliot and suggested he might like to try his luck. Colin made several visits and on the 23rd March, just four days after the equinoctial full moon and consequent high tides, he managed to get his photograph - not of an Otter but of a Grey Seal!
Postscript: On Tuesday the 11th October (2011) Chris Hatch and I visited the area of the lower Wye below Pierce Woods (Chepstow), this stretch of the River being named Longhope Reach. It wasn't long before Chris spotted a Grey Seal drifting slowly down-stream with the receding tide.
Colin Titcombe (included in this newsletter with the author's permission, and originally published in the Gwent and Glamorgan Recorders' newsletter of autumn 2011).
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Climate Change vs Economic Change |
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 At a Monmouthshire Environment Partnership Board workshop held in association with GreenWeb in 2007, Morgan Parry, then Head of WWF Cymru (now Chairman of CCW) expressed positive views about recent political moves towards a consensus to combat climate change. He also warned that a backlash was likely, especially if the main nations responsible for climate change failed to take action. The election of President Obama at the end of 2008 raised hopes that at least one of those offending nations would amend its ways, but his election coincided with the start of a global depression that sidelined green measures unless they were affordable and created wealth and jobs. It is now China, least affected by the economic crisis, that seems to be taking the greenest steps, though with a vast backlog of pollution to put right. The backlash in the West is now clearly apparent, whether in the resurgence of the climate change deniers and doubters, apparently not persuaded by the 'precautionary principle', or in Obama's retreat from a green agenda in the face of increasing right wing Republican opposition. Flatlining capitalist economies bring hardship to many households, a consequence that may not have been foreseen by environmentalists who were contesting governments' GDP growth goals. But economic stagnation has helped to bring Western emissions targets nearer, if partly by shifting manufacturing to the East and still unlikely to be achieved. On the other hand public spending cuts are now reducing incentives to change our behaviour, such as the attractive Feed in Tariff. These FiT cuts could undermine our County Council's Green Deal programme. The Council is reviewing its car parking charges and the pressure to reduce these in order to encourage shopping in our town centres seems more likely to succeed than the case for raising them to encourage more use of Council-subsidised bus services. It may be ten years before the economic situation is resolved. In which time China and India, with their growing economies and increasing recognition of the cost of floods, storms and water shortages, may yet prove to be the leaders in aggressive climate policies. |
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Monmouthshire Walking Festival |
| The idea of a Walking Festival is not new to Monmouthshire - Adventa has run a number of walking weeks and weekends since creating the Festival in 2010. However the day-to- day running of the Festival has now been taken over by "the gang of four", Clare Scutts, Helen Kenneally, Chris Brown and Sue Waters who aim to broaden its scope and its appeal. They have set about working in a different way - by contacting local interest groups and asking them to create a walk with them. Special interest groups such as bird watchers, astronomers, conservation groups, historical societies and health and fitness groups all pitched in to bring something a little bit special to the October 2011 event.
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Walkers at Devil's Pulpit, above Tintern Abbey |
The Festival ran from October 21st for ten days with literally something for everyone - at least one serious walk a day and then a special interest event in the afternoon or evening which gave the Festival an inclusive feel and helped broaden people's knowledge of Monmouthshire.
"We've done a great deal of scouting about to find new ideas," said Chairperson Clare Scutts, "and the fact that Kate Humble has come onboard to support us has certainly helped." The nine key walks covered Tintern, Llanthony Valley, Kilgwrrwg, Whitebrook and the Abergavenny area. A challenge walk took on the Three Castles in one day and was actually the first walk to sell out. "We have learnt a great deal from this Festival", said Clare, "but we clearly received the message, that above all people want long exhilarating walks with competent and well informed walk leaders."
All events were ticketed and all walks had a limited number of participants to make sure the group moves at a suitable pace. For cost as well as ecological reasons tickets were sold online or directly from Tourist Information Centres and there was a minimal reliance on flyers and posters. "Facebook, press and word of mouth were all vitally important and our emailing database now comprises more than 900 addresses! The response from walkers was exceptional", reported Chairperson Clare Scutts. "With half term, Rugby World Cup and not the kindest of weather
conditions we were unsure how visitors would respond. In the end 93% of all tickets were sold. The Walking Festival had collaborated with many local groups - Usk and Abergavenny Astronomical Society, Shirenewton, Chepstow, Monmouth and Abergavenny Historical Societies and Usk Conservation Group to put together the programme. Whilst Lottery Funding helped them on their way, private sponsors Trekitt and St Pierre gave the Festival a huge boost, not to mention more than twenty pubs and restaurants who ensured that each event had its own sponsor. "The Festival is in a strong financial position to go forward next year and we are confident that there is the demand to make a second event possible. We are much indebted to our walk leaders who often helped on several walks and without whom clearly the Festival could not take place." The Walking Festival AGM will be held at The Babington Centre, Trellech on Thursday December 8th at 7.30pm and further information about Monmouthshire Walking Festival's plans are available from the website www.walkinginmonmouthshire.org.
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