Road to Nature — Living Levels

Once an infamous flytipping blackspot, the Road to Nature has been transformed into a fantastic haven for wildlife and people.

Situated on the western edge of Newport in Coedkernew, the site boasts a diverse range of habitats, including woodlands, reed beds, meadows, hedgerows, and more, with vital green corridors connecting to the wider landscape. The road and adjacent area totalling approx. 35 acres is owned by Newport City Council, approximately one third of which lies within a designated Site of Special Scientific Interest.

The road was originally built as a distribution road to support the LG Electronics factory in the mid 1990’s but was then abandoned when LG pulled out of the development. Over the course of 20 years, it became a magnet for massive amounts of commercial and household fly tipping from across the UK. By the mid 2010’s the rubbish was piled high along the 1.5km road length and into the adjacent woodland and meadow.

“The Road to Nowhere”, as it became known, became a very intimidating, unsafe, no-go area for residents despite being linked to a newly improved cycle route at its southern end.

In 2018, Newport City Council and local residents decided that action must be taken to reclaim this area for people and nature. In October 2021, a major clean-up was funded and undertaken by Newport City Council and a local waste management contractor. This was followed by a Big Community Litter Picking Event organised by local residents in collaboration with Newport City Council. Over 120 members of Newport and Cardiff litter picking groups, members of the public, Keep Wales Tidy Officers, Council Members and staff turned out to continue the removal of rubbish from the site. In total over 700 tons of illegally tipped rubbish was removed and recycled where possible.

With the vast amount of rubbish cleared away, it was immediately evident that the site contained a diverse range of natural habitats already populated by a wonderful diversity of wildlife which needed to be acknowledged and valued as an asset to nature, the local community and Newport City Council. To deter reoccurrence of fly tipping on site, a locked entrance barrier and CCTV cameras were installed by NCC on The Road. There have been no further fly tipping incidents to date.

Within RtN site there are a diverse range of habitats with deciduous woodlands, reed beds and wetland areas, meadow, hedgerow and scrub, reens/ reen margins, road verges, tarmac roadway, rubble bunds and air space with connecting green corridors leading to farmland, reens, meadow, hedgerow & coastal habitats. The biodiversity here is complex and diverse; to date, over 730 species have been recorded, covering a wide range of plants, birds, mammals, invertebrates, reptiles, amphibians, fungi, fish and microorganisms with several rare/scarce species including Bombus sylvarum (Shrill Carder Bee), Sehirus luctuosus (Forget-me-not Shieldbug ) and also a first for Wales, Contarinia petioli (Aspen gall Midge).

Watch A Journey for Nature and Community: Road to Nature, Newport (Gwent Green Grid)

Road To Nature,
Coedkernew, Newport, NP10 8TU
> Website
> Facebook: Friends of Road to Nature
> Google maps