A consortium of bodies including Powys County Council are seeking funding for works to be carried out in the catchment for the Hafren/Severn which rises on the Pumlumon Massif, with major tributaries also starting their journeys in the Cambrian Mountains.  The aim is to mitigate the risk of flooding for towns and villages including Worcester far downstream; and the plan appears very ambitious in scope if, so far, lacking in clear definition as to exactly what works might be done where.  The Society attended two of the drop-in consultation meetings on the current version of the plan, in January and February 2026, and filed a brief formal response highlighting the importance of conserving the extensive peatlands of the Cambrians as well as the impact of forestry plantations on upland drainage.  You can read our full comments here.

It is clear that this project is far from fully defined – the next stage will be to contact insurance companies and water companies to pay for any of the works.  But we will be keeping an eye in the future and seek further opportunities to make sure the project enhances the landscape and communities of the catchment rather than exploits them for the benefit of larger populations further afield.

Meanwhile, there is an opportunity to probe Powys County Council’s prioritisation of economic growth over nature, landscape and well-being arises with their current consultation on their draft new policy.  The strategy tries to reconcile traditional economic growth policy with the ethos of the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act. But these frameworks are never truly integrated. The result is a hybrid document in which the language of wellbeing appears throughout, while economic growth still drives the underlying policy structure.

You can respond to the consultation in an online survey at: Have Your Say  where you will also find downloadable PDFs of ‘Grow Powys’ and the consultation document.