Caught stealing geese from Llangynidr - and tried at Brecon Quarter
Sessions in 1853 - 42 year old David Lewis from Llangattock was sentenced
to 7 years transportation to Tasmania for his crime. Life was very hard in
Crickhowell at that time, and with families to feed David and others were
driven to theft in order to survive. Many found themselves jobless and
penniless and were forced to live in the local Llangattock workhouse, now Ty
Croeso Hotel. Others would bed down around the Llangattock lime kilns at
night to keep warm, and many died when they were affected by the toxic kiln
fumes during the night.

Now in its third year, the Festival has more than sixty guided walks over nine days of walking in the Brecon Beacons National Park from Saturday 27th February to Sunday 7th March 2010. The terrain varies from short and level walks in the beautiful Usk Valley to very tough exacting routes at high altitude.

More than 20 tourism operators turned up to the first ‘Diamonds in the Sky' workshop, jointly hosted by Brecon Beacons National Park Authority and the University of Glamorgan, providing an introduction to astronomy to help them engage with the night skies and market their business to other keen star gazers.

Wardens from Brecon Beacons National Park Authority and local Black Mountains' graziers are spending three days this week coordinating the airlift which will involved shifting 120 bales of heather onto the hillside at an altitude of 700 metres. Extreme weather conditions, the remote location and the altitude of the site meant that using a helicopter was the only option for access work, which will also include improvements on a 1km section of popular footpath on the twmpa, near Gospel Pass.

On Wednesday (13th January), Lord Puttnam, Chair of the judges, revealed The Green Valleys as one of three winning communities. The project fought off competition from over 350 community groups across the UK because of their achievements over the course of a year in four areas: CO2 reductions achieved; the innovative nature of their initiatives; the longevity and scalability of their project; and their level of community engagement. They will be awarded £300,000 from the prize fund.

At Brecon Magistrates' Court on Friday 11th December after pleading guilty to felling seven mature cherry trees in the Talgarth Conservation Area, Mr Arwyn Davies, Director of Wyro Developments was fined £2,600 and ordered to pay a victim surcharge of £15, with £664 costs awarded to Brecon Beacons National Park Authority.

You could be forgiven for thinking that a small country like Wales might have little impact at the United Nations Climate Change Conference, but when it comes to green energy, the whole world may be looking towards the Green Valleys in Wales for inspiration.

Based in the picturesque Brecon Beacons National Park, The Green Valleys community project and Talybont on Usk Energy have been chosen to be featured in the TV series ‘Road to Copenhagen', which is part of the United Nation's Seal the Deal Campaign. In the lead up to the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen on the 7th of December, the series was broadcast across Europe and Asia during the months of September, October and November on the CNBC network. The series will also be showcased during the summit itself as part of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) stand.

The historical research will form part of a new interpretation panel on the site of the old farm cottage at the Centre which will tell the story of the people who worked on the land, visited the farm or have interesting memories of the farm and the people who lived there. Whether stacking hay in an old barn or gathering sheep in from the common, childhood memories from an old farm can take you on a nostalgic trip down memory lane. So, if you or your family remember those halcyon days at Caeharn Farm, near Libanus, then the Brecon Beacons National Park Authority would like to hear from you.