Kenfig nature reserve seeking new management

Looking to the future - reserve manager Dave Carrington, council officer Mark Blackmore, volunteer warden Robert Howells and cabinet member Charles Smith

A nature reserve will need new custodians as a council seeks to end decades of local authority management.

The lease to run Kenfig National Nature Reserve expires in December 2019.

Bridgend County Borough Council has tried to find someone else to take it over since 2010 without success.

Natural Resources Wales said it was working with the owners of the reserve and prospective tenants to ensure its protected plants and wildlife were safeguarded.

The 1,300-acre (530 ha) reserve between Porthcawl and Port Talbot is regarded as one of the finest examples of a sand dune habitat in Europe - with up to 200,000 visitors a year, according to reserve manager Dave Carrington.

It is owned by the Kenfig Corporation Trust which is in discussions with various organisations about taking over its management.

Bridgend council said it wanted to make way for a more specialised organisation such as the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds or the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust.

Kenfig is the last stronghold in Britain of the fen orchid

Charles Smith, cabinet member for education and regeneration, told a cabinet meeting on Tuesday that other organisations could run it with a more "commercial mind".

"The lease we have isn't set up for a proper visitor attraction," he said.

"For example, having a cafe on site is specifically prohibited."

Councillor Smith said conservation charities could also tap into grant aid and the support of members as visitors and volunteers.

Bridgend council expects to save £40,000 a year from handing over the site, which relies heavily on grants to meet the annual running costs of £200,000.

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Daron Herbert, a team leader from Natural Resources Wales, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service the environment watchdog was keen to ensure Kenfig Dunes was respected as a special area of conservation and site of special scientific interest.

"We have supported the process by advising prospective tenants on the protected site considerations and responsibilities," he said.

Kenfig Corporation Trust has been asked to comment.