Siskin and Turbines before AGM

Chris Wallbank was presented with a cheque for £250 donated by WWF Cymru for coming first in the Natur Cymru wildlife art competition for his painting of a Siskin. As the bird is perched amongst blossom it is likely that this will be the front cover of the spring 2014 edition of the magazine.

Left to right: Mandy Marsh, Geoff Gibbs, Andrew Oughton,
Daniel Jenkins-Jones, Chris Wallbank, Shenaz, James Robertson,
Catherine Duigan, Andrew Tuddenham, Delcie Simkin & David Parker 

Andrew Oughton from Plas Tan y Bwlch presented the cheque on behalf of WWF Cymru. The occasion coincided with the Natur Cymru AGM and board meeting which was held in the library of The Plas.

Before the presentation we enjoyed a beautiful walk through the woodland up to Llyn Mair and then down the line of the 2013 hydro scheme which replaces the one first installed in 1884. The installation was full of challenge with the need to avoid ground nesting birds, roosting bats and ant hills. To avoid root damage to particular trees, such as the Tree of Heaven and some enormous Limes, it was necessary to hand dig in parts.

The original Gilkes turbine installed in 1884 cost £48 and generated 7Kw. The 2013 turbine, also from Gilkes in Lancashire, cost £47,000 and generates 30Kw. Total cost of the project was a little over £400K and the payback is expected to be within 10 years.