AMBITIOUS plans to almost double the number of nature reserves in Blaenau Gwent have moved a step closer.

Five new reserves are proposed in what will be a significant acceleration in the 'greening' of the county borough.

Despite concerns over aspects of the plan, the council’s community services scrutiny committee has recommended that Beaufort Hill Ponds and Woodland, Central Valley, and Garden City - all in the Ebbw Vale area - and Parc Bryn Bach and Sirhowy Hill Woodlands in Tredegar, all become nature reserves.

The plan will now go before the council's executive committee.

Concern centred on the proposal to designate Parc Bryn Bach as a nature reserve, with Councillor Wayne Hodgins worried that this might affect future investment there.

“We have an external provider providing facilities. If we made Parc Bryn Bach a nature reserve it would be restrictive to any expansive plans," he said.

“I would like more information about the long-term viability and the impact of any potential investments. I think this needs further dialogue.”

Parc Bryn Bach was named as a Discovery Gateway site by the Welsh Government in October, and is eligible for a share of £7 million in funding under that scheme, which aims to connect tourism hotspots in the region and encourage people to be more active and explore their natural surroundings.

Cllr Hodgins submitted an amendment to remove Parc Bryn Bach from the proposed nature reserves list pending further discussions as to the implications for the Discovery Gateway investment. However, it was rejected.

Therefore, all five areas will become nature reserves if the council's cabinet accepts the proposal.

Blaenau Gwent already boasts seven local nature reserves.

The National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act 1949 states that for a site to become a nature reserve, “it must have natural features of special interest to the local area, and the authority must either have a legal interest in the land or have an agreement with the owner to manage the land as a reserve.”