The natural, cultural and historic value of the Gwent Levels will continue to be eroded by damaging developments, unless our national planning tools are strengthened and sharpened, says Gwent Wildlife Trust. 

Due to its exceptional ecological and natural resource value, the Welsh Government has designated the Gwent Levels as a National Natural Resource Area (NNRA) and is now consulting on additional measures to guide planning decisions to enhance this national treasure. Gwent Wildlife Trust welcomes the consultation; for decades the charity has been demanding clearer and stronger guidance to protect the natural, cultural and historic value of the Gwent Levels  from damaging developments. 

Gemma Bodé, Head of Nature Recovery at Gwent Wildlife Trust says: 

“This consultation is an important step forward, and we must not fall short on this opportunity to safeguard what remains of the unique, irreplaceable and valuable Gwent Levels landscape and enhance it for future generations.

Hundreds of acres of valuable natural habitat has already been lost and fragmented by inappropriate development since World War 2, the steelworks site being just one example. Compensation for lost nature sites have regularly failed on the Gwent Levels, so we are underlining that any mitigation proposed alongside planning must have watertight evidence it will work and over what time frame. For example, seeding and planting to establish a new species-rich meadow to replace an area lost to development may not work and in any case, the wildlife that requires this habitat cannot survive without it over those years of waiting.”

In their response to the consultation, which closed 31^st March, Gwent Wildlife Trust have called for the guidance to go further on several aspects of policy, to ensure it has the teeth needed to protect this irreplaceable landscape in the way that it is intended. Along with Wildlife Trust Wales, (representing the 5 Wildlife Trusts in Wales), they are advocating for a planning system that provides strong protections for nature by directing development away from the key and most sensitive areas that form the cornerstones of the Nature Recovery Network. By steering development towards less sensitive locations, the planning system can ensure that new homes, businesses and infrastructure support rather than undermine nature’s recovery.

Speaking on behalf of Wildlife Trusts Wales, Joe Wilkins, Policy and Planning Manager said: “We commend Welsh Government for the formulation of this Strategic Planning Guidance (SPG). It’s essential to the sustainable management of natural resources throughout the Gwent Levels NNRA, and indeed to other NNRAs across Wales. Given the fragile and complex nature of the Gwent Levels’ coastal and floodplain grazing marsh ecosystem, the presence of multiple SSSI-designated features, and the numerous known and unknown pathways through which development (particularly large-scale ground-mounted solar) may cause harm, the threshold for development consent should be extremely high.”

Editor’s notes: 

Gwent Wildlife Trust
Gwent Wildlife Trust owns 28 nature reserves covering over 700 hectares and protects, restores and connects wildlife at hundreds more sites across south east Wales through advice, outreach, campaigning and collaboration. Our work is strengthened by our local roots and reach, with around 8,000 local members, hundreds of volunteers and diverse community partnerships, working together to protect and restore wildlife across Gwent.

Gwent Wildlife Trust’s vision is for people close to nature in a landscape rich in wildlife.

We are part of The Wildlife Trusts, the UK’s biggest nature organization. 

Gwent Wildlife Trust has been managing land for nature on the Gwent Levels and campaigning for its protecting for over 60 years, including successfully campaigning against the M4 Relief Road, Craig y Perthi Solar Development and is currently campaigning against multiple development threats to the Gwent Levels.

For more information:

Debbie Stenner, Head of Fundraising and Communications, dstenner@gwentwldlife.org

Wildlife Trusts Wales
The Wildlife Trusts work with national and local government, businesses and local communities to influence planning and development to achieve better outcomes for wildlife. Across the UK, the Wildlife Trusts respond to around 6,500 planning applications per year, and tens of thousands more are vetted and checked for impacts on wildlife. 

The Gwent Levels
The Gwent Levels is an extraordinary landscape sandwiched between the hills of south Wales and the silt-laden waters of the Severn Estuary. Reclaimed from the sea by the Romans, over the last two thousand years, generations of people have shaped the Levels to create a distinctive landscape with a deep, rich history and a wealth of wildlife. www.livinglevels.org

Strategic planning guidance for the Gwent Levels National Natural Resource Area (Future Wales Policy 9) 
This consultation seeks views on draft strategic planning guidance for the Gwent Levels National Natural Resource Area (NNRA).

The draft guidance:

• explains how the Gwent Levels should be taken into account in development plan preparation and planning decisions
• sets out ways to help enhance the Gwent Levels designated landscape and its important features
• supports the implementation of Policy 9 of the National Development Framework, Future Wales in the Gwent Levels (NNRA).

Strategic planning guidance for the Gwent Levels National Natural Resource Area (Future Wales Policy 9) | GOV.WALES