The local environment of the Afon Cedron around Pentrefelin near Criccieth will be improved thanks to a cash boost by Gwynedd Council’s Tidy Town’s scheme.
This will be the second year for the project funded by Tidy Towns initiative to be undertaken in Gwynedd. The aim of the project is to eradicate three invasive non-native plant species from the catchment of the Afon Cedron around Pentrefelin.
On Tuesday, 17 July at 7pm the project will be re-launched at Y Ganolfan, Pentrefelin to give local residents and others that are interested in the project the opportunity to find out more. During the evening there will be presentations on the project and the problems caused by invasive non-native species and plenty of opportunity to ask questions. Refreshments will be provided and there’s a warm welcome to all.
The plants in question, Himalayan balsalm, Japanese knotweed and American skunk cabbage can cause major problems in an area- their invasive nature means they crowd out important native biodiversity. They also increase the risk of flooding and can cause structural damage locally.
The plants are not native therefore they don’t have any natural predators and their spread needs to be controlled by man.
Adam Daniel, Gwynedd Council Biodiversity Officer said:
“This will be the second year for the project to try and control invasive non-native species in the area surrounding Pentrefelin. We’ve done good work up to now but there are some areas that require attention.
“This project allows us to work at a river catchment scale and with the support of the local community we hope to eradicate the plants from the whole catchment – quite the feat.”
This exciting project is being run in partnership between RSPB, Gwynedd Council, Natur Gwynedd, Environment Agency Wales and Keep Wales Tidy and one of the main aims of the project is to create strong links with the local community including residents, landowners and community groups.
For more information contact Adam Daniel, Gwynedd Council’s Biodiversity Officer on 01286 679381.
