Fire mountain: Who's to blame.

 

 

 

The recent publication of a book called Whinchat Ridge by lifelong friend Steve Smith documents one mans passion for the birds of an upland area called Mynydd Garn Clochdy just south of Blaenavon. I also have fond memories of birdwatching and nest finding with Steve in this amazing ffridd habitat. So its heartbreaking to see an area that's given so much joy and is rich in biodiversity destroyed almost overnight by a devastating wildfire.

Its purely speculation but I lay the blame for this catastrophe at the feet of those who simply do not understand or care about the environment and have no concept of risk, especially in a changing climate. Earlier this week I witnessed people using disposable barbecues at the Keepers Pond that's located right on the edge of the Blorenge Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), a habitat that's witnessed several extensive wildfire's in my lifetime. 

However, my guess is that this fire will have been started by the actions of the lawless off road community that use this environment for illegal activities without fear of prosecution. Their utter discontempt and selfishness destroys habitat, disturbs wildlife and livestock, and raises the blood pressure those like me who just want to use this landscape to escape for some peace and quiet. We also mustn't forget this is Common Land  used by local farmers to graze animals and the impact this will have on them and their livelihoods. This anti-social behavior has now risked the safety of Firefighters and will have cost the public purse millions of pounds to resolve. While the Police occasionally mount operations to catch these unlicensed and uninsured bikers its only ever scratching the surface. The sound of biker activity is ever present and echoing around the landscape when walking in the uplands at weekends and/or in the evenings. In my opinion the Police are not taking this issue seriously enough and are therefore culpable in this environmental and public health disaster.

So what role does the local authority have in all this landscape mayhem? Well, having worked for the local authority for many years I know there are good, committed, hardworking individuals who care deeply about the local environment not just for its wildlife but as an accessible green space resource for local people and visitors to enjoy - there many other ecosystems services this habitat provides. Torfaen Council is very much as urban centric local authority where dwindling resources are focused on the main urban settlements at the expense I feel of the rural or suburban landscape. As an example there is a whole team built around the traditional management of urban green space through regular grass cutting etc., but by contrast little is available for partnership working to manage the largest area of accessible green space in the county borough and to protect and enhance its multifunctional benefits.  I believe it needs a dedicated team of staff akin to those deployed for urban grass cutting to ensure the issue of landscape management is given the profile it requires.  So those who control the budgetary purse strings, allocate resources and devise operational structures must wake up to the fact that in the wake of the councils celebrated promotion of Blaenavon as a Industrial Landscape World Heritage Site that suitable resources must be found for its proactive management. The local authority must also understand that the climate is changing and so its structures and resource allocation must prioritize and reflect the challenges this will bring. Whether its smoke from a wildfire that causes a public health concern or water run off from the uplands in times of heavy rain it cannot be denied that the uplands has a important influence and potential major impact on communities along the valley bottom. In my opinion public bodies are simply not climate ready so must urgently wake up and smell the burning vegetation before more public money is wasted and biodiversity is lost. 

Crisp and dry

 

I try to avoid weekend daytime visits to the Blaenavon landscape on the basis that most, not all, of the people I encounter display little respect for the environment. This includes inconsiderate dog walkers with no control of their animals, off road vehicles and those who still use barbecues despite the risk of sparking a damaging wild fire. Nevertheless, with the current heatwave continuing and invertebrate activity peaking I risked raising my blood pressure with a Sunday afternoon visit to that finger of semi natural habitat that sits on the margins of Waunafon Bog and the edge of the main road to Brynmawr and that supports an accessible sustainably designed cycleway.

Arriving at the Whistle Road car park of Garn Lakes Local Nature Reserve I was heartened to find only one other car present. This prompted me to have a quick look at how the ponds were coping amid this exceptional spell of dry weather, in the comfortably knowledge that the chance of a dog bothering me was low. At this point I need to be clear that I have no objection to dogs, its their owners that's the problem. Over my years of naturalising I've been bitten twice, approached by off lead barking dogs including a threatening Rottweiler and lost count of those who just want to jump all over you with muddy paws. And the amount of dogs mess, well that's another story.

Rather predictably the ponds were stressed, some were completely dry, others with varying degrees of standing water, but none were full. Around one pond that had water a non- stop Emperor Dragonfly patrolled  in contrast to a Four-spot Chaser that was keen to repeatedly perch on emergent vegetation. A few Emerald Damselfly kept low.  At another pond the muddy margin revealed an unidentified Stonewort and my first record of Small Pondweed, albeit that it seems to be widely recorded in the vice county 35.

Following the cycleway north but with frequent detours into adjacent herbage, the grassland here was bone dry with many of the wildflowers crying out for a drink. Walking through this habitat was accompanied by the sound of crispness and at no point did my similarly dry Scarpa Ranger walking boots receive a much needed drenching from a hidden waterhole. Despite this lepidoptera appear to be doing well, including second generation Common Blue, several Marbled White, Gatekeepers, Meadow Browns, Small Skippers a stand of Meadow Thistle supported a good number of Peacocks, the odd Red Admiral, Painted Lady and Small Tortoiseshell. It was also pleasing to see a healthy population of Grayling butterfly on the wing, readily alighting on the dusty pathways as I walked. 

 

Ferreting through the developing Willow scrub I relocated the stand of Round-leaved Wintergreen I found last year. Most of the 50+ spikes were in flower but with one or two already showing signs of die-back. Back in the baking sunshine I wandered around an area of poorly vegetated coal spoil only to find some Hare's Tail Clover enjoying the conditions this feature provides. Where there were plants in flower I found the large diptera Tachina grossa and several Five and Six Spot Burnets. 

Other notable records on this outing included Harebells and at least three pair of Stonechat.

 

Around the tips in 80 minutes.

 

For the last couple of months I've been immersed in a Grasshopper Warbler survey of the wider Blaenavon landscape, so my usual springtime examination of the mineral extraction spoil tips that are such a dominating feature of this landscape have been neglected. Nonetheless I was determined to make time to squeeze in a visit to Canada Tips mainly to check out if the infamous Alpine Clubmoss was continuing to thrive. 

It was around 4pm when I entered the parched environment of Canada Tips, with its bare ground, exposed rock along with a growing sense that rewilding is progressing with purpose in its stride. Its a landscape of twists and turns, ups and downs and wet and dry features that has variation in abundance, more than enough to keep an aging naturalist occupied for hours. The terrain in heart of this landscape is rugged and sometimes unpredictable sudden changes in ground conditions can trap those less sure footed, so I tend not to encounter too many other walkers when I'm going about my business. That said the off road motorbiking community continue to be an ever present annoyance around this area, and so it was today. Three bikers could be seen intermittently dipping in and out of view as they rode the tips like bobbling plastic ducks through the river rapids of a charity duck race. Thankfully it wasn't long before they disappeared from view and could be heard accelerating down the highway toward Blaenavon. Perhaps they had to be home in time for tea, or risk the threat of a clip around the ear hole from mam.

Bird song is declining but those species that are multi-brooded are still keen to knock out a tune or two. Skylark and Meadow Pipit remain vocal and Stonechat continue to give those pebbles a bashing if you get too close to their patch. And Linnet still call as they move between Gorse patches. A male Wheatear didn't need to sing as its white rump stood out like a right wing flagshagger's English flag hoisted on a urban lamp post, as it flew towards its now maturing offspring that begged for its attention.

On my way to destination clubmoss I noted several new patches of Bog Pimpernel and a marshy hollow between two tips that was somewhat wetter than a firefighters boot as I weaved my way around several Southern Marsh Orchid and a couple of alighting Marbled White butterfly. Looking upwards I caught sight of a few nodding heads of Common Cotton Grass, a sure sign of a wetland feature on the horizon. 

At tip summit a stand of candy floss like cotton grass clothed one side of a small pond, as a Snipe took flight in earnest zig zaging over the tips and down. A dragonfly glided from the emergent vegetation only to crash land in a nearby patch of Juncus. I moved stealthily to secure an identification and a confirmation photograph. It was located and confirmed as a recently emerged Black Darter dragonfly hence its laboured flight.

 

 

I was now in sight of the clubmoss tip so I made haste making best use of the tip top sheep tracks to arrive at my destination without too much stumbling or swearing. Having located the Alpine Clubmoss and a nearby finger like patch of Fir Clubmoss, it struck me that the heather surrounding these primitive plants was maturing quickly and that the Apline Clubmoss may therefore be suffering by slow strangulation. Should I revisit with a pair of secateurs to clip the offending Heather or let the process of rewilding proceed unabated albeit complete with its winners and losers? I returned home to drift back into retirements inertia and the World Cup.