What's Keep Gower Green all about?

The Gower Peninsula is special - its inhabitants know it, its visitors know it, people from all over the country and even the world recognise it. Unfortunately though, so too do the developers. They know that if they can get their hands on a slice of Gower and build on it then they're onto a winner.

Despite it being a protected Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), recent years have seen the developers pile pressure on Gower's green spaces like never before. The rewards for them are just too tempting. As a recent example, a substantial number of modern houses have been built in Pennard ('Badger's Meadow') on what were green fields. Very few members of the local community wanted the development - with the exception of those few who stood to gain financially.

This website was launched to oppose a major proposed development in the Pwlldu area of Bishopston. This application - number 2006/1031 - was defeated in 2006, but we are currently opposing a very similar application - 2007/0172. No doubt there will be others to oppose in the future...

Celebrity support!
Broadcaster, Gower lover and presenter of the Really Wild Show Howie Watkins emailed us this true story which shows just how widely Gower's beauty is recognised:

I once met 'Father Christmas' while filming reindeer in Finland, high in the Arctic Circle. He asked me where I was from and when I told him Neath, near Swansea, he said "Oh, I love the Gower Peninsula, it's so beautiful". I was surprised that someone from so far away should know Gower and asked, without thinking "Have you been there?" He jokingly replied "Of course... I go there once a year every year!" I'd forgotten that of course Santa goes everywhere on earth on Christmas Eve, but on a serious note it speaks volumes about the unique character of Gower that someone in Finland should instantly remember it. Gower is worth fighting for!

What if.....?
Creeping development is many Gower lovers' biggest fear. What starts off as a couple of new housing estates can, over time, result in the loss of acres and acres of green space. It makes slightly disturbing viewing, but you can see a thought-provoking animation of how urban creep kills green spaces here