Volunteers braved the weather on Wednesday evening to help rid the river Alyn of a non-native, invasive species – the Himalayan balsam.
Himalayan balsam has rapidly spread along the Alyn and throughout the UK in recent years. It grows in dense stands, has minimal use to our native wildlife and will suffocate other bankside vegetation, therefore reducing biodiversity. It then dies back over winter leaving bare banks which are more susceptible to erosion.
The project to eradicate the plants started in 2008 and since then a partnership including Flintshire and Denbighshire County Councils, the Clwydian Range Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, North East Wales Wildlife, North Wales Wildlife Trust, Keep Wales Tidy, the Friends of Alyn Valley Woods, the Cacwn working group and many individuals living alongside the river have been working hard to control the spread of this non-native and invasive plant with the aim of eradicating it from the whole of the Alyn valley.
Ruth Calcraft, Warden for the AONB, said: “A fantastic amount of work has been done tonight and it was great to see so many different people coming out to help but this is just the start of what will be a very busy season. The key to beating this plant is working together so we need the continued support of the local community both individuals and groups, and landowners all along the river to really make this project a success and to eradicate this invasive plant from our local river. A huge amount of work was done last year by volunteers and we need to build on that again this year and so I would encourage anyone who is interested in helping to get in touch.”
Kylie Jones Mattock, Reserves Manager for NEWWildlife, said: “It was great to see so many volunteers and staff from such a number of organisations pulling together to tackle this invasive weed, despite the gloomy weather!
“The event was the first step on a long road, though: NEWWildlife welcomes volunteers who are keen to help us keep up the level of effort and beat the balsam.”
After 2 hours of work volunteers enjoyed a well earned buffet at a local pub. The launch event coincided with Wales Biodiversity Week running from 5th to the 13th June and International Year of Biodiversity this year.
There will be frequent walks along the river throughout the summer to pull this invasive plant. If you would like to get involved please contact Sarah Brown [email protected].
To celebrate International Year of Biodiversity there are lots of free wildlife events going on across the whole of North Wales – to find out more see the biodiversity events listings available from your local council website or your local biodiversity officer.
