South Wales Echo

We’ll soon need flag wavers in front of cars

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SO more areas of Cardiff will get 20mph zones (Echo, December 8). They give us the reason being road safety – what a contradict­ion when you see the state of the roads around this city, many nearly as bad as those in the Third World.

The time must be fast approachin­g when pushbikes will need to carry registrati­on plates, as so many cyclists will be capable of breaking this law. This could bring a new income stream to this council, and might encourage cyclists to fit lights for riding around after dark and maybe wear something reflective rather than believing they have an angel looking out for them.

This council recently threatened action against businesses that put A-boards on the pavement as these could cause a danger to those with sight impairment. Yet we find their cycle scheme bike parks popping up all over the place. Surely these and the chrome bars on pavements cause just as much if not more of a hazard. Also when it comes to road safety, it would help if pedestrian­s were aware that the road is not a part of the pavement. Therefore it wouldn’t be such a bad idea to look around like people used to do. Another hazard on the roads around the city, especially for motorcycli­sts, but also presenting a danger to pedestrian­s and others, are the fallen leaves. This council tells us they want the city to take a lead when it comes to recycling, yet carry on wasting this valuable resource, which often blocks drains.

When it comes to the 20mph zones, is it possibly part of a council job creation scheme for the future, when there’ll be a need for drivers to employ a man or woman with a red flag to walk in front? Mr Frank Spragg Cathays, Cardiff

Things look better for red squirrels

I wanted to let you know about an exciting new discovery we’ve made as part of our Red Squirrel Project in Mid Wales and to see if this was of any interest to you.

The Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales’ team have discovered a new haplotype that hasn’t been found anywhere else in the world. Haplotype is a genetic marker, a DNA sequence that can help us to understand the genetic make-up and ancestry of an animal.

Put simply, haplotype is a closeknit group of genes which an offspring inherits from one parent.

We put sticky pads on the inside of red squirrel feeder stations and hair samples were collected from this.

From this finding, we can take away that the population of reds in Mid Wales has a healthy genetic diversity, which means our conservati­on efforts are more likely to be successful, because having a diverse gene pool helps population­s adapt to changing environmen­ts.

We will also be using this finding to help raise vital funds to be able to continue this project over the next two years.

The Wildlife Trust of South and West Wales needs to raise £110,000 to fund work on the ground. This will ensure we can continue to maintain and enhance habitats for red squirrels, but also expand our team to restore some key areas that could be improved to make them more suitable for red squirrels. We’re also keen

Another hazard on the roads, especially for motorcycli­sts, are the fallen leaves

Frank Spragg Cathays

to investigat­e and develop innovative monitoring techniques to track red squirrels which will provide useful informatio­n to feed into future forest management plans.

Red squirrels numbers in the UK have fallen from around 3.5 million in the 1870s to between 120,000 and 140,000 individual­s today. We’re finally seeing positive results with more sightings in Mid Wales, but it is vital we continue to encourage and protect these iconic native animals.

We’re always on the look-out for volunteers and of course donations. We are hoping to raise the £110,000 through grants, trust funds and individual donors who want to see red squirrels thriving. If you can help, please email Becky on b. hulme@welshwildl­ife.org or contact us on 01656 724100 to kindly donate.

Rebecca Vincent Marketing, Communicat­ions & Legacy Fundraisin­g Officer Wildlife Trust of South & West Wales, Tondu, Bridgend

The small print: Letters will not be included unless you include your name, full postal address and daytime telephone number (we prefer to use names of letter writers but you can ask for your name not to be published if you have a good reason). The Editor reserves the right to edit all letters.

 ??  ?? PHOTO OF THE DAY
PHOTO OF THE DAY
 ??  ?? Bute Park. Picture taken by Paul Tarrant of Rumney
Bute Park. Picture taken by Paul Tarrant of Rumney

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