Powys County Council says it is putting in place a number of initiatives to conserve wildlife along the county’s roadsides.

The council and its contractors have taken several measures to increase the biodiversity of the wildlife on roadsides in Powys.

There are 127 Roadside Verge Nature Reserves along the county’s road network.

Current initiatives which are underway include leaving whole sections of verges uncut with their own individual management plans to benefit the species resent on the site.

Some grass cuts along roadside verges will be scheduled to prolong nesting and breeding seasons in many species of animals and birds, allow flowers to set and seed and allow insects to complete their life cycles.

Urban verges usually receive three grass cuts a year. This has been altered so that much more of the verge is left uncut to support more wildlife. Rural verges usually have one cut per year, except where more visibility is required.

Adrian Jervis, head of highways, transport and recycling for Powys County Council, said: “Maintaining grass verges is a balance between ensuring the safety of road and path users is not compromised while also preserving wildlife.

“However, with careful management, it is possible to do both.

“The urban grass verges are where we are keen to make even more changes to the way they have previously been managed.

“By working with local groups and town and community councils, we can identify areas that can be left uncut, making improvements year on year on the number of areas designated for conserving biodiversity in the county.

“There are approximately 5500 km of surfaced roads in Powys, and we are working hard to identify areas along our extensive road network where grass verges can be managed in a way which increases their biodiversity is really beneficial to our local environments.”