Dear Peter Perry CEO of Welsh Water/ Dŵr Cymru, 

Hands off our reservoir!

The recent emptying and proposed permanent removal of the Clydach reservoir, in Llanwonno Forest, RCT, is an act of social and environmental vandalism. The loss of the reservoir would devastate local people. As the CEO of Dŵr Cymru we demand that you immediately re-think your plans and find alternative options. 

Over many decades, the Clydach reservoir has become an incredibly important place for the surrounding communities of Ynysybwl, Pontypridd, Cwmaman, Ferndale, Perthcelyn and Mountain Ash.  In an area short of high-quality and accessible destinations, it forms the end point for family walks, hikes, rambles, cycle trips and runs.

Not only does it help improve the physical health of local people, in an area blighted by high rates of diabetes and obesity, but it has a hugely positive benefit on our mental health and wellbeing. This was clear during the covid lockdowns, when it became an essential oasis of calm, helping to ease our anxieties. 

Climate change predictions show that extreme rainfall will become more common in Wales in the coming years. Ynysybwl and Pontpridd have already suffered devastating floods in 2020. The reservoir could be used to manage flood risk by storing and slowly releasing flood water, lowering the peak flows of the Clydach and Taff rivers. Heatwaves, droughts and forest fires will also become more common in summer. Already the reservoir is used by helicopters to fill up buckets when fighting fires locally. The loss of the reservoir would therefore increase the risk of forest fires spreading, destroying habitat and private properly and putting lives at threat. The removal of the reservoir would contradict the local priorities of Natural Resources Wales to slow water from the uplands and fight wild fires.  

The Clydach reservoir forms an important, locally-rare and well-established habitat for many animals and birds. The reservoir supports insect life which sustains herons, ducks, kingfishers, swallows, swifts, cuckoos, night jars and wagtails. Rare birds of pray, including goshawks, sparrow hawks and merlins, live nearby. If the reservoir hadn’t recently been drained (without any consultation) Canada geese would now have returned and be nesting there. Amazingly, otters have also been recently spotted in the Clydach river below. Considering this, a recent statement by Dŵr Cymru, which claimed the removal of the reservoir would ‘restore’ and ‘re-naturalise’ the water course,  is misleading and disingenuous. There is already a thriving ecosystem there which would be destroyed by the removal of the reservoir.

As members of the surrounding communities, we demand Dŵr Cymru finds workable alternatives to these devastating plans. Indeed, failure to do so would completely contradict your own stated ambitions to align with the seven Well-being Goals in the Future Generations Act.