The Afon Lwyd or Afon Llwyd () is a long river in south-east Wales which flows from its source northwest of

Blaenavon Blaenavon () is a town and community (Wales), community in Torfaen county borough, Wales, high on a hillside on the source of the Afon Lwyd. It is within the boundaries of the historic county of Monmouthshire (historic), Monmouthshire and the Pr ...

, through

Abersychan Abersychan is a town and community (Wales), community north of Pontypool in Torfaen, Wales, and lies within the boundaries of the Monmouthshire (historic), historic county of Monmouthshire and the Preserved counties of Wales, preserved county o ...

Pontnewynydd Pontnewynydd is a predominantly working class suburb of Pontypool, Torfaen, in Wales. It should not be confused with Pontnewydd in nearby Cwmbran. Location It lies in between Pontypool to the south and Snatchwood to the north. The area of Tor ...

Pontypool Pontypool ( ) is a town and the administrative centre of the county borough of Torfaen, within the Historic counties of Wales, historic boundaries of Monmouthshire (historic), Monmouthshire in South Wales. , it has a population of 29,062. Locat ...

, Llanfrechfa and

Cwmbran Cwmbran ( ; , also in use as an alternative spelling in English) is a town in the county borough of Torfaen in South Wales. Lying within the Historic counties of Wales, historic boundaries of Monmouthshire (historic), Monmouthshire, Cwmbran was ...

before flowing, at

Caerleon Caerleon ( ; ) is a town and Community (Wales), community in Newport, Wales. Situated on the River Usk, it lies northeast of Newport city centre, and southeast of Cwmbran. Caerleon is of archaeological importance, being the site of a notable ...

, into the

River Usk The River Usk (; ) rises on the northern slopes of the Black Mountain (''y Mynydd Du''), Wales, in the westernmost part of the Brecon Beacons National Park. Initially forming the boundary between Carmarthenshire and Powys, it flows north int ...

, which subsequently flows into the

Bristol Channel The Bristol Channel (, literal translation: "Severn Sea") is a major inlet in the island of Great Britain, separating South Wales (from Pembrokeshire to the Vale of Glamorgan) and South West England (from Devon to North Somerset). It extends ...

to the south of

Newport Newport most commonly refers to: *Newport, Wales *Newport, Rhode Island, US Newport or New Port may also refer to: Places Asia *Newport City, Metro Manila, a Philippine district in Pasay * Newport (Vietnam), a United States Army and Army of t ...

. The river was severely affected by pollution from industry and mine discharge, and

fly tipping Illegal dumping, also called fly dumping or fly tipping (British English, UK), is the dumping of waste illegally instead of using an authorised method such as Kerbside collection, curbside collection or using an authorised civic amenity site, ru ...

, but during the 1980s efforts were made to improve water quality and improve fish stocks. To aid this, the

Environment Agency Wales Environment Agency Wales () was a Welsh Government sponsored body that was part of the Environment Agency of England and Wales from 1996 to 2013. Its principal aims were to protect and improve the environment in Wales and to promote sustainabl ...

built a

fish ladder A fish ladder, also known as a fishway, fish pass, fish steps, or fish cannon, is a structure on or around artificial and natural barriers (such as dams, locks and waterfalls) to facilitate diadromous fishes' natural migration as well as mov ...

Pontymoile Pontymoile () is a suburb of Pontypool in Torfaen, South Wales. It is all but merged with the nearby suburbs of Cwmynyscoy and Upper Race. It is a community of Torfaen, and includes the electoral wards of Brynwern, Cwmynyscoy, and Pontypool ...

in 2010 enabling fish to ascend past the weir there. In late 2011 it was claimed that the river was in its cleanest state since

medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with the fall of the West ...

times. Historically, the river has also been known as the

Torfaen Torfaen (; ) is a Principal areas of Wales, county borough in the South East Wales, south-east of Wales. Torfaen is bordered by the county of Monmouthshire to the east, the City status in the United Kingdom, city of Newport, Wales, Newport to t ...

– meaning 'breaker of stones' – which gives some indication of the force of the river during surges. Although this name is no longer in use for the river, it is still in common use as the name for the local authority,

Torfaen County Borough Council Torfaen County Borough Council () is the governing body for Torfaen, one of the Principal Areas of Wales. History The borough council was created in 1974 under the Local Government Act 1972 as a lower-tier district council with borough status. ...

Flooding risk

The geography of the river's location, as well as how local towns affect run-off, has meant that during periods of heavy rainfall the river can quickly become a torrent and localised flash floods are not uncommon. The last major flood of the river occurred in the 1930s.

Conservation projects

Beginning in March 2010, the Friends of Afon Llwyd (FOAL) project is a partnership between Torfaen County Borough Council and two local angling clubs in Cwmbran and Pontypool aiming to improve the river as a habitat for

salmon Salmon (; : salmon) are any of several list of commercially important fish species, commercially important species of euryhaline ray-finned fish from the genera ''Salmo'' and ''Oncorhynchus'' of the family (biology), family Salmonidae, native ...

sea trout Sea trout is the common name usually applied to anadromous (sea-run) forms of brown trout (''Salmo trutta''), and is often referred to as ''Salmo trutta'' morpha ''trutta''. Other names for anadromous brown trout are bull trout, sewin (Wales ...

and

brown trout The brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') is a species of salmonid ray-finned fish and the most widely distributed species of the genus ''Salmo'', endemic to most of Europe, West Asia and parts of North Africa, and has been widely introduced globally ...

. The

Wye and Usk Foundation The Wye and Usk Foundation is an environmental charity based in Talgarth, Powys in Wales which seeks to secure and improve the natural environment of the River Wye and River Usk for the benefit of local communities, anglers and others. Founded in 19 ...

also received £130,000 of funding to remove invasive weeds, manage bank erosion, create fish leaps, drop weirs and improve community engagement with the river both by fishing and other means. Nearly £750,000 has and will be spent on improving the river. A major effort of the FOAL project has been to lower a weir that blocked upstream fish migration at Ty Nant Ddu, Pontypool. In 2008, salmon were spotted here. Additionally, similar efforts were made at the weir located near Cwmavon. To further improve fish stocks (especially salmonid) 'V' weirs were constructed to trap gravel and create suitable spawning habitats.

American crayfish infestation

The river has been invaded by the American

signal crayfish The signal crayfish (''Pacifastacus leniusculus'') is a species of crayfish indigenous to North America. Introduced to Europe in the 1960s to supplement the North European ''Astacus astacus'' fisheries, which were being damaged by crayfish plague ...

, which is affecting the native protected

white-clawed crayfish ''Austropotamobius pallipes'' is an endangered European freshwater crayfish, and the only crayfish native to the British Isles. Its common names include white-clawed crayfish and Atlantic stream crayfish. Distribution It is found from the easter ...

. Not only does the invading species fight for food resources, but it also carries crayfish plague, to which the native species has no immunity.

Afon Lwyd Trail

The Afon Lwyd Trail is a shared-use path running from

Blaenavon Ironworks Blaenavon Ironworks is a former industrial site which is now a museum in Blaenavon, Wales. The ironworks was of crucial importance in the development of the ability to use cheap, low quality, high sulphur iron ores worldwide. It was the site o ...

in the north via Pontypool to Cwmbran in the south. The path initially follows the

Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal The Monmouthshire and Brecon Canal () is a small network of canals in South Wales. For most of its currently (2018) navigable length it runs through the Brecon Beacons National Park, and its present rural character and tranquillity belies its ...

followed by a section on the former Pontypool to Blaenavon railway. The trail incorporates two

National Cycle Network The National Cycle Network (NCN) was established to encourage cycling and walking throughout the United Kingdom, as well as for the purposes of bicycle touring. It was created by the charity Sustrans who were aided by a £42.5 million N ...

routes: 49 and 492.

References

External links