![Pinterest](https://pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?url=https://uknews.evprotec.com/coal-tip-repairs-threaten-rare-wildlife-ecologists-warn/&media=https://uknews.evprotec.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/08/130913707_whatsappimage2023-08-27at11.06.49.jpg&description=Image source, Liam Olds Image caption, There are almost 2,500 disused coal tips across Wales, like Cwm tip, near Beddau, Rhondda Cynon Taf, which has been reclaimed by nature Work to remove old coal tips or make them safe could be "devastating" for some of Wales' rarest species of wildlife, it has been claimed. The safety of coal tips is under review after a major landslide in 2020. But ecology experts have said they feel left out of discussions even though these sites were home to rare and previously unknown species. The Welsh government said it was considering "interconnections between tip safety and environmental law". There are almost 2,500 disused coal tips, mounds of waste material from the country's mining past, across Wales. But nature has taken hold decades on from the industry's demise. Surveys have since revealed the sites have become home to a wide range of plants and insects, birds, reptiles and amphibians. Image caption, New discoveries include millipedes named Maerdy Monster and Beddau Beast after the areas in which they were found "You don't have to go to the Amazon to find new species, you can actually just head to your local coal tip," said Liam Olds, an entomologist - or bug expert. His study over the best part of a decade has identified more than 1,000 invertebrate species living on coal tips in south Wales, with one in five classed as being of "conservation importance". New discoveries include millipedes named Beddau Beast and Maerdy Monster after the areas in which they were found. The tips have become such havens for wildlife because they support many different types of habitat in close proximity - from flower-rich meadows and areas of woodland to ponds and patches of bare ground. A total of 99 tips have officially been designated as sites of special scientific interest (SSSI) and a further 32 registered as special areas of conservation (SAC). "There are a lot of people, including those making decisions about the future of these sites, that ar){kind=link}
Work to remove old coal tips or make them safe could be “devastating” for some of Wales’ rarest species of wildlife, it has been claimed.
The safety of coal tips is under review after a major landslide in 2020.
But ecology experts have said they feel left out of discussions even though these sites were home to rare and previously unknown species.
The Welsh government said it was considering “interconnections between tip safety and environmental law”.
There are almost 2,500 disused coal tips, mounds of waste material from the country’s mining past, across Wales.