A PROJECT set up to maintain, promote and educate people about the Gwent Levels has had to think on its feet after the government lockdown was put in place.

Living Levels was launched thanks to a £2.5 million grant from the National Lottery Heritage Fund.

However, due to the current restrictions, brought about by Covid-19, those involved have had to think outside of the box to ensure that their work can continues.

"We've had to be more creative with our time indoors," said a spokesperson.

While exploring the Levels may be off limits at the moment, there are still ways to virtually wander through the streets and villages.

Google Earth and Street View make it easier than ever to explore the area - in perpetual sunshine - and discover hidden gems that may have remained so until the lifting of the lockdown.

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As well as this, there is also a new GIS application on the Living Levels website (livinglevelsgis.org.uk).

This tool can be used for detailed examination of landscapes past and present. Switch on the ‘keyhole views’ and you can hover over a site and move between the mid-19th century maps, the Court of Sewers data and the physical landscape revealed by LIDAR scans.

Even though many people will be following government guidelines and only travelling to the Levels through the medium of the internet, there are still a small minority who have decided that the rules do not apply to them.

Fly-tipping is a problem in many areas, and the Levels are no different.

However, Living Levels' Black Spots to Bright Spots project has achieved a number of successful enforcement outcomes over the last few months.

"Since November, we’ve seen five individuals prosecuted," said a spokesperson.

"We have also received payment for a £400 Fixed Penalty Notice, and had a simple caution signed following fly-tipping investigations on the Levels."

However, there is no time to be complacent as, with the closure of the household recycling centres across the region, "there will be more work to do" for the project's fly-tipping team.

While it may be fairly quiet out on the Levels at the moment, the Living Levels team are still hard at work - from home - to keep the programme going as well as keeping up engagement with the public.

There is also the Website Safari competition – a weekly competition answering a question by going to the website to find the answer.

"The prizes are ‘Gwent Levels Experiences’ to enjoy once we can," said Gavin Jones, Community Engagement Officer.

"It's really great to get people to visit the website and enjoy the amazing content"

"Last week's competition included a Gwent Levels emoji quiz of places on the Levels."

To take part, or to find out more about the work being carried out by Living Levels, visit livinglevels.org.uk