AN ORDER made today to sell a nature reserve to make way for the M4 Relief Road means "dark times for the Gwent Levels" an environmental group said.

Gwent Wildlife Trust received the Compulsory Purchase Order today for the section of nature reserve at Magor Marsh near Magor.

The trust said it will take an area of wet grassland and ditch rich in rare wildlife that includes meadow thistle, otters, water voles and ancient pollarded willows.

This area is representative of many parts of the Levels expected to be compulsory purchased for the motorway relief road development, much of which is nationally designated for its wildlife importance.

Gemma Bodé Living Landscapes Manager says “The M4 relief road proposals including the Compulsory Purchase Order if successful would rob an area of the Magor Marsh reserve and bring dark times for the Gwent Levels as a whole and the nationally important wildlife that thrives here.

She added: "The drainage system on the Levels is extremely complex and 2500m of ditch and reen, full of nationally rare plants and insects would be lost if the proposed relief road goes ahead. There is no way to replace these with brand new ditches never mind maintain the integrity of the drainage system that ultimately prevents many villages and towns on the Levels from flooding.”

Gwent Wildlife Trust is running a drop-in session where they will speak about the impacts of the proposed M4 Relief Road on the natural environment.

The session will be held at Magor Marsh Education Centre near Magor on Tuesday 26th April from 4pm-7pm. Staff will be on hand to chat to members of the public and Ian Rappel, GWT’s Chief Executive, will be talking about the Trusts concerns from 6pm.