Volunteers clear litter and fly-tipping in Cwmbran woodland

The Eco-Warriors of Bran group took to clearing Greenmeadow woods in Thornhill last week.

The woods contain two Bronze Age burial mounds with standing stones marking them.

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“We are dedicated to cleaning up the woodlands and green spaces,” said founder Richard Davies.

Richard Davies of the Eco-Warriors of Bran. Picture: Eco-Warriors of Bran.

“Our main emphasis is to help nature. The woodlands in Cwmbran are ancient woodlands. They are absolutely beautiful in the summer and spring with the wild flowers in bloom.

“It’s such a shame. We are appealing for funding to buy tools and equipment to dig out historic rubbish which is over a foot deep in places, out of our woodlands and brooks to slow the flow of microplastics into the sea.

“There are about 10 of us that turn up regularly. We do each Sunday from around 10am to 1pm.

“Covid made everyone a little bit more aware of nature and their local environment.

The Eco-Warriors of Bran with some of the litter they collected. Picture: Eco-Warriors of Bran.

“I started by myself. It upset me to see the woodlands and green spaces in the state they were in – I used to play there growing up. I thought I’d just do it myself. I would go out and pick up a few bags full.”

Mr Davies then teamed up with another volunteer in the area, and found the litter hubs in Torfaen – where residents can borrow litter picking equipment.

“I started sticking it on Facebook and a few more joined and then a few more joined,” said Mr Davies. “We are getting there as a group.”

The Eco-Warriors of Bran with some of the litter they collected. Picture: Eco-Warriors of Bran.

On Sunday, June 6, the group picked up more than 30 bags of litter and tons of fly-tipped waste.

“You generally get a lot of litter. We got about 30 bags full,” said Mr Davies.

“We pulled out a full living room carpet with the underlay, the frame of a quadbike and the wheels, a load of Venetian blinds and some kids’ cuddly toys.

“You come across anything and everything. There was a wheelie bin in there and lots of timber. When people take a fence down, they go and chuck it in the woods thinking its wood so its fine. But it not as it’s been treated and will have nails in it. It’s ecologically damaging.

The Eco-Warriors of Bran with some of the litter they collected. Picture: Eco-Warriors of Bran.

“We are trying to take a very tolerant and patient position. We don’t want to get in to an argument with anyone, we just want to go out and clean up our area.”

Mr Davies said he took inspiration for the name of the group from an ancient Welsh protector.

“We’re called the Eco-Warriors of Bran,” he said. “The modern translation of the Welsh word ‘Bran’ is ‘crow’, but in medieval Welsh, ‘Bran’ was seen as a divine protector of an area. So I thought I’d use that in our name as we are protecting the environment.”