Ponies on Gower

Following recent enquiries from public about ponies on common land on Gower, we hope this will address people’s concerns …..

 

The National Trust is the owner of large areas of common land on Gower and is responsible for the upkeep of the land both for its nature conservation and as a source of grazing for the livestock of local landowners with commons rights.

 

Being the owner of common land is very different to being the owner of private land which is then let to local graziers. Despite being the landowner of these commons the historical legal position is that we have limited control over the livestock themselves. The responsibility for the livestock falls entirely on the owner of the animals.

 

The situation we have had in the late winter and spring this year is a circumstance of a long winter following a poor summer in 2012. Animals on the commons have found it hard to find sufficient vegetation to graze and subsequently their condition has suffered.

 

The National Trust in partnership with the RSPCA has been in constant contact with the owners of the animals. The RSPCA has attended many animals and assisted the owners to remove animals when necessary and to regularly observe the animals condition to look for signs of improvement or decline. We know all of the graziers whose animals are on the commons and any sign of an animal in distress is immediately relayed to the owner. This is then followed up with a phone call to the local RSPCA contact so they can begin their own investigations.

 

The National Trust is obviously extremely concerned about the situation and we would advise that anyone who sees an animal in distress and is concerned about the welfare of these animals contact the local RSPCA.

As mentioned in replies to earlier correspondence, we would be happy to discuss this further if you’d like to email us on gower.admin@nationaltrust.org.uk

 

50 Things to do before you’re 11 3/4

Start your adventure here … on Gower!

Today sees the launch of our updated list of “50 things to do before you’re 11 3/4.  We asked kids around the UK to vote for their favourite outdoor adventures.

Here’s Kathryn our Ranger who has picked some fun activities from the 50 things list that we know will be great to do on Gower.

Calling all Gower Adventurers! …

Each month we’ll be bringing you three different outdoor activities:

• A Perfect Day to be Out & About’ Challenge
• A Quick & Easy Challenge
• A Special Challenge
  

So, are you ready for May’s challenges? ….  Here goes!

May’s Special Challenge is … Climb a huge hill

How’s about a walk to Gower’s highest point? The trig point on Rhossili Down is 193m above sea level. And speaking of sea level, you’ll get a cracking view of the sea and Rhossili Bay from the top, so don’t forget your picnic!

While you’re up there you could try the “perfect day to be out and about” challenge ….  Roll down a really big hill

Pick a route without rocks and brown smelly stuff! (yes, we’re talking about animal poo!) How fast can you go?

If the weather is not so good how about our Quick & Easy Challenge -  Play pooh sticks

Anyone can play from your little brothers and sisters to your great grandparents.  All you need is a bridge (not one used by lots of cars!) over a stream or river and a stick for every player.

On the count of three, everyone drops their sticks on the upstream side of the bridge. Then run to the other side of the bridge to see who’s stick comes out first. Who’s the winner?!

Come back next month for June’s Challenges

Happy Adventures!

Kathryn

April Accomplishments

April seems to have disappeared so fast and yet we have achieved loads out with the volunteers.We started the month finishing the fencing at South Pilton Green Farm to protect our new hedge (still get excited about our newly laid hedge! We are just waiting for it to burst into life.)

The Saturday group brought us an absolutely glorious spring day up on Ryers Down where we spent the day cutting and burning rhododendron. We had a massive turnout again and cleared loads. We are still clearing the rhodie that was burnt two winters ago but progress is definitely being made.

Unfortunately the culvert work we undertook at Overton last month didn’t quite work so we teamed up with volunteers from the Wildlife Trust and locals and spent the day there diverting ditches, redoing the culvert and litterpicking the beach. I have just been down there this morning and its all looking really good so fingers crossed this time round.

I had a week off this month so Kathryn took the opportunity to take the volunteers up to Brecon for the week to help out with some fencing in a rather remote location. I have heard they all had great fun, worked hard and enjoyed working with the Brecon staff and volunteers. Its nice to be able to go to other sites now and then for a change of scenery but also to see how other sites work. Hopefully I can go with them next time

Last week was a mixed bag with jobs here and there and everywhere! We liiterpicked Mewslade, Rhossili Cliffs and Pennnard Cliffs; repaired some dry stone walling, repaired the Rhossili Beach path; cleared some burnt gorse at Mewslade, cut Cotoneaster at Pennard and cleared some rhododendron at Penmaen. Phew!!

I also went out on the hunt for some refugia mats that we put down late last year to monitor reptiles on Gower in association with ARC Trust. I did manage to find them, tho some do appear to have gone missing, or lost in the undergrowth somewhere. We now have many willing volunteers who are going to take a look at them over the summer months to give us an insight into the reptile populations on Gower.

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Dormouse Project Update

For those of you who have been following the story of our dormouse project, here’s an update from Kathryn our Ranger…

It’s that time of year when dormice will start to wake from their hibernation as the weather (hopefully!) warms up. So I thought it might be time for an update on all the work that’s been done with the Dormouse project.

So many people have got in touch, wanting to help. It seems no one is immune to their cuteness.

We’ve spent all the grant money given by Environment Wales on coppicing, survey tubes and wood to make boxes.

So far we’ve put up 38 boxes and we’ve got some more to do.  We’ve also got survey tubes which won’t last as long as the boxes, but are an easy method of establishing if you have dormice on your land.

Many thanks go out to our volunteers – Neath Port Talbot college have made 18 boxes and very kindly made me feel at home, when I visited their campus to tell them about the project.

Horitculture students from Neath Port Talbot College with their boxes

Ross, Victoria, Neil and Emma  from the Environment Agency (soon to be Natural Resources Wales) also made some boxes and then helped put them up in Bishopston Valley.

Several of our regular Gower NT volunteers have made boxes as well as National Trust Working Holiday Volunteers.

Members of the Eco Club at Bishopston Comprehensive have also done some coppicing and put up boxes. Pupils from Bishopston Primary will be getting involved in the next few months. Olchfa School and Penclawdd Primary have also contributed to the success of the project.

Pupils from Bishopston Comprehensive Eco Club put up boxes

We’ve even got desk bound central office staff out and about in the woods! and I have to say Lucy (Greenberry) was also very handy with a hammer.

So now the really exciting bit starts…monthly checking of the boxes from March to October.

From past experience I expect to find woodmice and shrews, blue tits and robins, slugs and woodlice, but what I really wish for, is to open a box to see a golden yellow body with a furry tail and big black eyes staring out at me. Fingers crossed…

I’ll keep you posted.

Kathryn Thomas, Ranger

March Madness

At the start of the month the Saturday group marched into Bishops Wood, Caswell (not NT) for some holm oak clearance with the Gower AONB Ranger, Huw Lloyd. Having dropped off the tools for them I went home to look after my poorly dog (he’s better now!), then returned later to see some tired but satisfied volunteers after a good days work.

Sunday found me picking up some new recruits from the train station for our Working Holiday week. We also had a fantastic pupil on a weeks work experience. The week started rather windily trying to clear gorse from Rhossili Down but calmed down a bit enabling them to have a go at some fencing on our farm on day two. Then on the Thursday we had Helen Grey join us to do some hedgelaying – which I am pleased to say – we finished the hedge today The last day of the working holiday found us litterpicking on Whiteford Beach followed by lunch at the Lodge before everyones journey back home. A great week had all round.

March has seen us race against the tide a couple of times with work out on the Worm’s Head. We did some scrub clearance, litterpick and put new posts on the safety sign – all before the tide came back in again! Go volunteers!

Groups from Gorseinon College and Morriston Comprehensive School also came out to lend a hand. Rhossili beach has been litterpicked all ready for the Easter Holidays – anyone brave enough for a swim yet? And we have cleared more of the burnt gorse from Rhossili Cliffs.

Last night we attended the meeting of the Abertawe Centre to say thank you for their work at Pennard Car Park, and to organise volunteers for this year to meet and greet people and share their knowledge of the area. They always give a warm welcome to everyone visiting Pennard Cliffs so say hello if you go.

And now I’m off to find my bunny ears – all set for our Easter Trail at Pennard on Saturday – come join us, follow the trail, there’s chocolate involved at the end!

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National Trust raises concerns over proposed Atlantic Array

The National Trust is currently raising concerns over Atlantic Array, the proposed wind farm between the coastlines of Gower and North Devon.  The Trust have submitted our response to the consultation this summer on the environmental impacts of Atlantic Array, and based on the current proposed scheme it is likely that we will be objecting to the proposals when it is sent forward to the Planning Inspectorate for decision later in the year.

The National Trust supports all the principal forms of renewable energy, providing they are of an appropriate scale and design for their setting, and produce a net environmental benefit. We are demonstrating how this is possible on our own sites, with over 130 renewable schemes already in place and a commitment by 2020 to be producing 50% of our direct energy use from non-fossil sources.

Renewable energy proposals which have a high environmental impact, such as Atlantic Array, present a particular dilemma. The local impact on landscape, setting and habitats have to be balanced against the longer term benefit of avoiding damaging climate change. It is now clear that in the case of Atlantic Array, the impacts are so severe that we must object to the whole proposal. Squeezed as it is, between two sensitive coastlines, we do not believe it is possible to locate a viable large scale windfarm within this zone without the damage substantially outweighing the benefits.

We believe that offshore wind should make an important contribution to the country’s renewable energy targets. We have not objected to a number of offshore wind development proposals within sight of the coastline protected by the Trust – for example at Liverpool Bay visible from Formby and at Great Gabbard visible from Orfordness, Suffolk. But we cannot support proposals that would seriously impact the natural landscape of two of Britain’s designated Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and believe that the locations chosen for Round 3 offshore wind developments have not taken sufficient account of environmental factors, and in particular the sensitivity and designations of nearby coast.

Leigh Freeman, Interim Property Manager said “To look across to Lundy from Worm’s Head on a clear tranquil day is unquestionably one of the most remarkable natural sights that Britain has to offer. It would be a tragedy to see a landscape which is so iconic and so unchanged by man to become industrialised”

RWE is currently considering the responses it received through the consultation process, with a view to submitting its planning application in Spring 2013.

February Frolics

I’m not sure if volunteers frolic (!)  but there are certainly now a few lambs around – has Spring arrived?

Our volunteers sprung into action this month starting with the Saturday Group clearing scrub at Cwm Ivy. 26 volunteers, 5 dogs and plenty of enthusiasm and hard work =bye bye scrub. The volunteers have done a tremendous effort over the last few years and Cwm Ivy Tor is now a fabulous flower rich limestone grassland. All that cut scrub had to be burnt the following day and thats when the Swansea University Conservation Ecology Society got fired up having spent the night at The Lodge Bunkhouse. They also had a go at splitting logs for our holiday cottages and a full log store proved a good days work.

In connection with Helen Grey, CCS Countryside Connections Officer the rest of the month has been spent coppicing and hedgelaying. Helen organised some workshops and myself and our volunteers were all keen to give it a go. The coppicing has been undertaken in Bishopston Valley as part of our Dormouse project. Kathryn has just come back into the office now after putting out some of the beautifully made boxes.

The hedgelaying has been taking place at our Farm – as part of our long term plan to restore all the hedgerows. With expert tuition from local farmer John Beynon we all learnt the fine art of laying a pleacher! It was great fun and very rewarding and it’s amazing how fab our first hedge looks.

Away from the fields all staff and volunteers from Gower and Aberdulais got together for our start of season meeting. It was great for both teams to have a chat and share ideas and stories.

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