THIS Newport worker needs to be sure-footed and have a head for heights - because the city council is branching out.

You may see a new inhabitant in trees across the council area: such as David Forrest, one of the local authority's tree climbers.

Newport has an estimated two million trees, and safety checks are regularly carried out by the city council - and any remedial work is carried out by a team of six full-time staff.

"This can involve felling work, tree surgery, or balancing work. "They are all trained tree climbers and able to perform actions such as an aerial rescue in an emergency situation," a council spokesman said.

Every year an estimated 400-500 tonnes of wood is shredded and recycled and used as mulching material for the city's shrub beds.

The council also has a tree re-planting policy and encourages people to 'donate' trees through its Trees for You scheme.

Almost every day the council receives letters from people complaining about trees.

People mainly ask for trees to be cut down because they block the light, affect views, or increasingly affect people who want to put up satellite dishes.

The council's policy is that unless a tree is dead, dying or dangerous it will strongly resist any requests to reduce the height of a tree for aesthetic reasons, and also because it has a major impact on the health and growth of the tree.

The council spokesman said: "Environmental and sustainable issues are becoming increasingly important issues in people's lives and are something Newport city council is looking to encourage people across the city to become involved with."

Now the council is encouraging the installation of bird and bat boxes across the city, and there are hundreds of the purpose-built wildlife homes being installed by the tree climbers.

Bat and bird boxes were first introduced at sheltered housing schemes several years ago, and now a pack is being sent to every school to encourage children to become more ecologically aware.

Bat boxes are put up in clusters, while bird boxes are put up individually and are always installed away from the prevailing wind. Oak trees, which are home to several hundred different species of insects, are particularly good sites, said the council spokesman.

"The bat boxes in the Pilton Vale reserve are particularly effective because they are near water and the bats feed on the midges. There are also successful boxes at the Allt-yr-yn reserve," he said.