News
Blue Gem Wind begins digital aerial surveys for 300MW Valorous floating wind project
BLUE GEM WIND, the joint venture between TotalEnergies, one of the world’s largest energy companies, and Simply Blue Energy, has begun offshore digital aerial surveys for a proposed 300MW floating wind project.
APEM Ltd have been chosen by Blue Gem Wind to deliver 24 consecutive monthly bird and marine mammal surveys of the early-commercial scale Valorous site. The high resolution data obtained will support baseline environmental characterisation of the site and environmental impact assessments for key ecological receptors.
The survey programme commenced in March 2021 and four of the 24 monthly surveys have been completed
to date.
Sean Evans, Environmental Specialist at Blue Gem Wind said, “It is important for us to begin long-lead in items
such as bird and marine mammal surveys as early as possible. These surveys will provide crucial species specific
data on the number, spatial distribution and activity of individuals across the Valorous site. This enables us to
undertake robust environmental impact assessments ahead of our planned consent application submission in
2023.”
Matt Rohner, Senior Consultant at APEM, “APEM Ltd are delighted to be able to support Blue Gem Wind’s
proposed Valorous offshore wind farm with our best-in-class survey design approach. Imagery captured using
state-of-the-art cameras is of ultra-high (1.6cm) resolution, providing industry leading image quality that is
essential for species level identification.”
The Celtic Sea is poised to play a key role in Net Zero, the Committee on Climate Change’s 100GW offshore
wind target, and crucially, the UK Government’s target of 1 GW of floating wind by 2030. The ORE Catapult also
estimated that the first GW of floating wind in the Celtic Sea could potentially deliver over 3,000 jobs and
£682m in supply chain opportunities for Wales and Cornwall by 2030.
Community
Stix Noodle Bar in Haverfordwest rewards visitors who park and shop local
A POPULAR restaurant is taking on one of the town centre’s biggest frustrations with a new initiative designed to ease parking stress and encourage more visitors into the heart of the community.
Stix Noodle Bar has announced a new scheme offering customers money off their bill when they show proof of paid parking in the town.
Under the initiative, diners who present an active parking ticket or parking app booking will receive the equivalent cost of one hour’s parking deducted from their meal bill.
The business says the idea was created in response to ongoing concerns about local parking pressures, while also supporting neighbouring independent traders and encouraging more people to spend time in the town centre.
In a statement released alongside the launch, the restaurant said: “Tired of Haverfordwest’s parking stress? So are we. That’s why we’re doing something about it.”
The team behind the noodle bar is encouraging visitors to “park up, come in, eat well, then go explore some of the brilliant businesses right on our doorstep,” adding that “Haverfordwest is worth stopping for.”
The scheme has already received support from local representatives, including Reform Councillor, Scott Thorley, who praised the move as a practical way to support the town centre economy.
“This is an excellent idea,” he said. “Tackling parking stress while boosting local businesses and footfall in Haverfordwest — this is exactly the practical support our town centre needs.”
Community
Pembrokeshire named UK’s most photographed coastal national park
County’s coastline places sixth in UK-wide photo study
PEMBROKESHIRE has been named the most photographed coastal national park in the UK, according to new data from photo curation app Popsa.
The study, which analysed metadata from millions of customer photos uploaded in 2025, ranked Pembrokeshire Coast National Park sixth overall out of the UK’s 15 national parks.
It was the highest-ranked coastal park in the list, ahead of destinations including the Cairngorms, Loch Lomond and the Trossachs, the Yorkshire Dales and Dartmoor.
Popsa gave Pembrokeshire a Photo Index Score of 28, representing 5.76% of all UK national park photography included in the study.
The company said the county’s 186-mile coastline, with its limestone arches, sea stacks, beaches and hidden coves, offered “photographic variety that few parks can match”.
Barafundle Bay was highlighted as one of the most photographed locations, particularly at low tide, while Skomer Island was noted for its puffin colonies, which attract photographers between April and July.
Wales performed strongly overall, with all three national parks appearing in the UK top ten. Eryri, formerly Snowdonia, ranked fifth, Pembrokeshire sixth, and Bannau Brycheiniog, formerly the Brecon Beacons, tenth.
Together, the three Welsh parks accounted for 16.46% of all UK national park photography in the study.
The Lake District topped the list, followed by the South Downs, the Peak District and the New Forest.
Popsa CEO Liam Houghton said: “Wales has three genuinely world-class national parks and this data shows they are clearly on photographers’ radar.
“But there’s a real gap between the quality of the landscapes and the volume of photos being taken there compared to the English parks.”
The findings suggest Pembrokeshire remains one of the UK’s standout destinations for landscape, wildlife and coastal photography, while also underlining the continued importance of the national park to the county’s tourism economy.
Crime
Pembroke woman accused of scrap fraud to appear in court
Defendant accused of dishonestly selling vehicle for scrap in Haverfordwest
A PEMBROKE woman is due to appear before magistrates charged with fraud after allegedly selling a vehicle for scrap in Haverfordwest.
Natalie Morris, aged 42, of Corston Lodge, Axton Hill, is accused of fraud by false representation under the Fraud Act 2006.
The allegation relates to an incident said to have taken place in Haverfordwest on Tuesday (Aug 9), 2022, in which Morris allegedly dishonestly made a false representation by selling a silver Toyota Corolla, registration CU52 XBR, for scrap.
The court heard the alleged offence was carried out with the intention of making a financial gain of £313.
The case was listed before Llanelli Magistrates’ Court on Monday (May 18), where a previously issued warrant was withdrawn.
No plea was entered and the matter was adjourned.
Morris is now due to appear before Haverfordwest Magistrates’ Court at 10:00am on Tuesday (May 26) for a plea hearing, where she will be asked to enter a guilty or not guilty plea.
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