Cardiff, United Kingdom
City population: 344626
Duration: 2009 – 2013
Implementation status: Completed
Scale: Micro-scale: District/neighbourhood level
Project area: 76506 m2
Type of area: Public Greenspace Area
Last updated: October 2021

Bute Park is a riverside green spot with an arboretum and gardens, containing a broad range of ecosystems supporting a wide variety of living species (ref 4). The historic Mill Leat had been dry since the 1970s."The word "leat" refers to "an open watercourse conducting water to a mill". The Mill Leat sits on the same site as a former millpond at the end of the original medieval millstream. It supplied water to corn mills located to the south of the Wst Gate and contained water well into the 1970s." (Ref 10) .Mill Leat Restoration or the re-flooding of the dry water body was a major deliverable under the Bute Park Restoration project (ref 2). In 2013 the overgrown channel was excavated, lined and refilled with water as part of the Bute Park Restoration Project (Ref 2). It enhanced the character of the park and provided a new habitat for wildlife (ref 1). Now re-flooded, Mill Leat is self-contained, self-regulating and self-circulating. It has reduced the risk of flooding and created a sustainable water feature (ref 2).

Overview

Nature-based solution

  • Parks and urban forests
  • Large urban parks or forests
  • Blue infrastructure
  • Lakes/ponds

Key challenges

  • Water management (SDG 6)
  • Flood protection
  • Stormwater and rainfall management and storage
  • Improvements to water quality
  • Green space, habitats and biodiversity (SDG 15)
  • Habitat and biodiversity restoration
  • Habitat and biodiversity conservation
  • Green space creation and/or management
  • Environmental quality
  • Waste management
  • Regeneration, land-use and urban development
  • Conversion of former industrial areas
  • Inclusive and effective governance (SDG 16)
  • Effective management
  • Social justice, cohesion and equity (SDG 10)
  • Environmental education
  • Health and well-being (SDG 3)
  • Creation of opportunities for recreation
  • Economic development and employment (SDG 8)
  • Employment/job creation
  • Cultural heritage and cultural diversity
  • Preservation of natural heritage
  • Protection of historic and cultural landscape/infrastructure
  • Preservation of historic traditions

Focus

Creation of semi-natural blue areas, Ecological restoration of ecosystems, Transformation of previously derelict areas, Knowledge creation and awareness raising, Improved governance of green or blue areas

Project objectives

The Bute Park Restoration Project aimed to maximise public access to and enjoyment of Bute Park. By 2013, the following goals were accomplished: 1. restoring and conserving its features of special historical, environmental and horticultural interest 2. introducing sustainable management and maintenance regimes 3. extending access to the park’s heritage by developing learning and recreational opportunities - Building of the Bute Park Education Centre. 4. Re-flooding of the Mill Leat 5. Increasing local biodiversity (ref 2) 6. Constructing dams (ref 2) 7. Reinforcing retaining walls (ref 2) 8. Removing and controlling knotweed (ref 2) 9. Creating and implementing a community benefits plan (ref 2)

Implementation activities

In order to re-flood Mill Leat the following works were undertaken (ref 2): - construction of an upper and lower dam to contain water and remove the risk of down-stream flooding - construction of 2 retaining dams - construction and installation of pumping main and station to circulate and aerate the fresh water for increasing local biodiversity - 270m of reinforced masonry clad retaining walls - a knotweed management plan was implemented - involved the encapsulation of 300m3 of Knotweed contaminated material. - during the construction phase, a Community Benefits Plan was developed in order to engage with our neighbor (Ref 2) - A number of visits to local primary schools with our H&S mascot, Sally Safesteps, were held. In conjunction with Cardiff and Vale College 4 weeks work experience was provided to a local brickwork student who has since been employed fulltime. (ref 2) - All works were undertaken in close proximity to Cardiff Castle, a Scheduled Ancient Monument and within Bute Park and Arboretum with strict tree root protection zones. (ref 2) - Regarding preservation of cultural heritage, excavation works were undertaken under an archaeological watching brief in conjunction with Cadw and a number of artefacts, including engraved leather items, a sword sheath, Venetian glass as well as pewter spoon and clay tobacco pipe were uncovered (ref 2) Re-flooding of the dry water body (ref 2)

Biodiversity conservation or restoration-focused activities

Biodiversity conservation:

  • Protect and enhance urban habitats
  • Preserve and strengthen existing habitats and ecosystems
  • Promote environmentally-sound development in and around protected areas
  • Create new habitats
  • Reduce negative impacts and avoid the alteration/damage of ecosystem
  • Protect species
  • Undertake specific measures to protect species
  • Undertake specific measures to protect valued species
  • Control and clean invasive alien species
  • Means for conservation governance
  • Raise public awareness
  • Public engagement
  • Capacity building

Biodiversity restoration:

  • Rehabilitate and restore damaged or destroyed ecosystems
  • Restore species (native, endangered, or unspecified)
  • Restore valued species
  • Clear and control invasive alien species
  • Restore ecological connectivity
  • Public engagement

Main beneficiaries

  • Local government/Municipality
  • Citizens or community groups
  • Food producers and cultivators (i.e. farmers, gardeners)
  • Young people and children

Governance

Management set-up

  • Government-led

Type of initiating organisation

  • Local government/municipality

Participatory approaches/ community involvement

  • Co-planning (e.g. stakeholder workshops, focus groups, participatory mapping)
  • Dissemination of information and education
  • Consultation (e.g. workshop, surveys, community meetings, town halls)
  • Citizen monitoring and review

Details on the roles of the organisations involved in the project

Client was the Cardiff City Council and the project was jointly funded by Cardiff Council and the Heritage Lottery Fund. (ref 1) (ref 2)

Project implemented in response to ...

... an EU policy or strategy? Unknown
... a national policy or strategy? Unknown
... a local policy or strategy? Unknown

Financing

Total cost

More than €4,000,000

Source(s) of funding

  • Public local authority budget
  • Other

Type of funding

  • Earmarked public budget
  • Direct funding (grants, subsidies, or self-financed projects by private entities)

Non-financial contribution

Unknown

Impacts and Monitoring

Environmental impacts

  • Environmental quality
  • Improved waste management
  • Water management and blue areas
  • Improved water quality
  • Increased protection against flooding
  • Improved stormwater management
  • Reduced risk of damages by drought
  • Green space and habitat
  • Promotion of naturalistic styles of landscape design for urban development
  • Increased green space area
  • Increased conservation or restoration of ecosystems
  • Increased conversion of degraded land or soil
  • Reduced biodiversity loss
  • Increased number of species present
  • Improved prevention or control of invasive alien species
  • Restoration of derelict areas
  • Other

Economic impacts

  • Increase of green jobs (e.g. paid employment positions)
  • More sustainable tourism
  • Reduce financial cost for urban management

Socio-cultural impacts

  • Safety
  • Increased perception of safety
  • Social justice and cohesion
  • Improved access to urban green space
  • Increased opportunities for social interaction
  • Health and wellbeing
  • Gain in activities for recreation and exercise
  • Cultural heritage and sense of place
  • Protection of historic and cultural landscape / infrastructure
  • Increased sense of place identity, memory and belonging
  • Education
  • Increased support for education and scientific research
  • Increased knowledge of locals about local nature

Type of reported impacts

Achieved impacts

Presence of formal monitoring system

Unknown

Presence of indicators used in reporting

No evidence in public records

Presence of monitoring/ evaluation reports

No evidence in public records

Availability of a web-based monitoring tool

No evidence in public records

References

1. Bute Park. (no date). Bute Park Restoration Project. [Website not available in 2020]
2. Alun Griffiths. (no date). Project Case Study - Mill Leat Restoration Project, Bute Park. [Available at: Source link [Accessed: Jul 9 2020]
3. Lottery Good Causes. (no date). Bute Park Restoration Project. [Website not available in 2020]
4. River of Flowers. (no date). Bute Park. [Website not available in 2020]
5. History Point. (no date). The Mill Leat, Bute Park. [Available at: Source link [Access on: Jul 9 2020]
6. Cardiff Caerdydd. (2019). Cardiff Biodiversity and Resilience of Ecosystems Duty Forward Plan: City of Cardiff Council Green Infrastructure Plan. Cardiff: City of Cardiff. [Available at: Source link [Accessed on: Jul 9 2020].
7. Cardiff Caerdydd. (No date.). Green and Blue Spaces. [Avaialable at: Source link [Accessed on: Jul 9 2020].
8. BBC News. (25 November 2013). Cardiff Castle Moat is Re-flooded After Excavation. [Available at: Source link. [Accessed on: July 9 2020].
9. Cardiff Castle. (No date). Bute Park. [Available at: Source link. [Accessed on: July 9, 2020].
10. Parc Bute Park. (2020). Use of Bute Park during the Covid-19 pandemic. [Available at: Source link. [Accessed on: July 9 2020].
10. Jackson, S. 2013. "Cardiff Castle's Mill Leat moat restored in Bute Park archaeological restoration". 26 November 2013. Available at: Source link. [Accessed on: Aug 10 2020].