A £9.5 MILLION project starts this month in a bid to protect Celtic rainforests in Gwynedd.

Through the eradication of invasive alien plant species, the aim is to bring these woodlands back to their former fertile state.

Four areas within Wales, including Snowdonia, Cwm Einion, Cwm Doethie and the Elan Valley, will benefit from funding by the EU LIFE programme.

The Snowdonia National Park Authority will lead the project on behalf of its partners that include RSPB Cymru, Natural Resources Wales, Welsh Water, the Woodland Trust, and the National Trust. The £9.5 million project will run between August 2018 and July 2025.

Celtic rainforests are considered of European importance owing to their open structure, and the mild and humid conditions within them that provide a perfect habitat for a wealth of vegetation.

The woodlands are currently in an unfavorable condition and are continuing to deteriorate. The spread of the Rhododendron ponticum is primarily responsible for the deterioration because it alters the soil condition, prevents sunlight from reaching the woodland floor, and outcompetes and suppresses the regeneration of native vegetation. Other factors that affect the woodlands are over or under grazing, lack of management and atmospheric nitrogen pollution.

The project’s main aim is to improve the habitat of lower plant assemblage such as mosses and liverworts within these woodlands by tackling the issue of invasive species, especially the Rhododendron ponticum, that threaten the conservation status of the woodlands.

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