Wood where: Barry, Vale of Glamorgan
Wood status: In private ownership. Replanted ancient woodland.
Wood threat: A planning application was submitted in 2004 for industrial units and houses. These plans would have led not only to the greatest loss of ancient woodland in Wales - 9.4 hectares, or 23 acres - since the Assembly awarded it protection (under ‘Planning Policy Wales’ in 2002), but also fragmentation and the degrading of the remaining 6.3 hectares (15 acres).
What happened?
Coed Cadw (the Woodland Trust in Wales) not only objected to the application, but also worked with local people to organise an effective campaign against the proposals.
The greatest problem faced was that the land concerned had been allocated for residential and industrial development before the Welsh Assembly issued ‘Planning Policy Wales’, which stated that: “Ancient and semi-natural woodlands are irreplaceable habitats of high biodiversity value which should be protected from development that would result in significant damage.”
What happened next?
A break-through came with the publishing of the Vale of Glamorgan’s Unitary Development Plan in 2005. Like its predecessors, the Plan still allocated Pencoedtre Wood for development. But it included the crucial proviso that there had to be an ecological survey of the site before any planning application was approved.
The Council accordingly commissioned ecological consultants, Ecotech, to do a full survey of the site. The work was done, and a very thorough and professional job it was too. It confirmed clearly that the wood is ancient and of very high ecological value, rebutting suggestions to the contrary by the developers.
The habitat survey found:
- no less than 46 different plant species specifically associated with ancient woodland, including greater butterfly orchid, wood sorrel and dogs mercury;
- in total, 126 different species of vascular plants were found;
- as well as 71 different kinds of mosses and liverworts
- 22 bird species
Armed with this information, the Woodland Trust stepped up its campaign to save the wood, highlighting the issue in the local press and contacting our own members in the area, raising the profile of the issue in the local community. Largely as a result of this, over 300 individual letters of objection were sent to the local council.
Very many individuals and organisations also threw their weight behind the campaign to save Pencoedtre Wood.
What's happening now?
In January 2008, the campaign came to a head. The application came before the Vale of Glamorgan Planning Committee, and Councillors duly threw out the application unanimously.
Great news for ancient woodland in Wales!