A FORMER chairman of the Brecon Beacons National Park has been recognised for her services to the environment in Mid Wales in the Queen's Birthday Honours.

Mrs Mary Taylor, of Llangenny has been awarded an MBE only a matter of months after she officially stepped down as the longest serving chairman of the National Park Authority after 13 years of dedicated service.

Mrs Taylor said, "It is quite an honour. I have been very privileged to work with some exceptional people and this award reflects on all those talented, dedicated and hardworking members and staff in the National Park.  I am grateful for the honour of this award and I am very touched to have been nominated. It goes without saying that I do miss working for the National Park Authority but I know that my friends, former Members and colleagues are as committed as I am to protecting our beautiful National Parks."

For many years Mrs Taylor has given her time in outstanding and dedicated service to the volunteer sector and to the environment in Wales.  During the 1960s before she came to the National Park, she worked as a nurse and as a volunteer in various roles, supporting single mothers, the Disabled Income Group, Deaf Awareness and Women's Rights.  A former pupil of Abergavenny Girls High School, she is a former Governor of Crickhowell High School.  She was also a Member of the Brecon and Radnor Community Health Council and a Member for Glas Cymru, a not-for-profit body of Welsh Water/Dwr Cymru. 

In her role as Chairman of Brecon Beacons National Park Authority, she steered the authority through a particularly challenging period of change and restructure.

Mrs Taylor, a former nurse has dedicated most of her life to public service and working with the underprivileged during her early years in London.   

More recently she has also served as a Member of Glas Cymru, Trustee of the Brecon Beacons Trust, trustee and vice-chairman for the Campaign for National Parks (CNP) and chair for CNP's Welsh Advisory Committee.

Mr John Cook, Chief Executive for Brecon Beacons National Park Authority said,  "The Authority is delighted that Mary's contribution to the environment in general and National Parks in particular has been recognised.  Mary's term as chairman ended last year but under her mentorship and exceptional leadership, this authority went from strength to strength.  In my experience working with Mary, it is her vision, openness to other's thoughts and obvious love and enthusiasm for embracing the importance of the National Park that have been a cornerstone in delivering our improvements. 

"We are a small National Park family but her tireless devotion to National Parks makes this award highly deserved.  On behalf of Brecon Beacons National Park Authority I offer her many congratulations."

A leading environmentalist who has worked extensively in Wales has said she is "delighted and very proud" after receiving an MBE in the Queen's Birthday honours for services to conservation in Wales and England

Judith Webb, who lives in Dulas, near Abergavenny, works has a Commissioner for Forestry Commission Wales.

She has played a key role in developing many of the Welsh Government's policies that have helped to shape much of the Welsh countryside.

A member of the Royal Welsh Agricultural Society's forestry committee, Ms Webb is a former director and trustee and is now Chair of the Best Practice Group of the Deer Initiative, which aims to maintain a sustainable, well-managed wild deer population in Wales and England.

On her award, she said, "I am delighted and very proud, but also humbled to gain this recognition of my work. It has been something I have enjoyed doing and which, I hope, has brought benefits to the many people who enjoy the countryside for a variety of reasons.

"The way we manage the Welsh countryside is at an exciting crossroads and I look forward to playing a full role in the decisions which will influence how we look after our most prized asset for years to come."

The former secretary of Wales' biggest one day agricultural show is one of the local people being honoured in the latest Queen's Birthday honours.

Kay Spencer, from Raglan, has been organising the annual Monmouthshire Show for the past 16 years and is awarded with an MBE for her services to the agricultural community in Monmouthshire.

Kay, aged 66 gave up the role after last year's event and said that she was flabbergasted at being honoured. She added: "It was a complete surprise and it had my family in tears. I went through the emotions of why me, but when you add up everything I do connected with agriculture from my role as secretary of the Monmouthshire Show, my connections with the Royal Welsh Show and in the past I was on the training board for farmers I can see why."

But its not just farming that Kay is involved in, she is a knowledgeable butter grade judge, having worked for the Intervention Board and now carries out this role at numerous agricultural shows across the country.

Kay concluded: "I will continue to support the farming community in Monmouthshire for as long as I can."

Dr Sunirmal Biku Ghosh, a consultant surgeon and breast cancer specialist at Nevill Hall Hospital receives an OBE for services to medicine. 

Dr Ghosh is the founder of Gwent-Southern Ethiopia Health Link, a charity that sends out medical staff to train frontline health professionals in rural Ethiopia like health officers, midwives and nurses working in resource-poor health centres.

The organisation, set up by Dr Ghosh and his team in 2000 also provides these health centres with essential medical equipment and training material and the link's last visit in March, involved teaching and training, donation of equipment, evaluation and monitoring, standard setting and needs assessment.

He said that being honoured with an OBE was official recognition for the work he has put into his various projects, adding: "We all have moral responsibilities to help to address the challenges developing countries face as result of inequalities in health care.

"Supporting partner countries in developing trained skilled workforce at rural facilities is the most important role the health links can play."

Biku Ghosh is also founder member and Chairman of the Wales for Africa Health Links Group since 2007 which co-ordinates and share experiences between 22 Welsh health links with 16 sub-Saharan African countries. His leadership has now leaded to the acceptance of non-governmental health links between health professionals in Wales and in sub-Saharan Africa as mainstream activity in NHS Wales.