The 50-year-old tip was closed down last year

For 50 years the four-and-a-half acre Felin-y-mor tip near Aberystwyth was the last resting place for everyday household junk.

But it is set to have a new life as a feeding and breeding ground for wildlife attracted to the variety of cover and protection it offers.

A public meeting on Wednesday is to discuss the options available to improve the site, including paths for people with disabilities, a sculpture trail, tree planting and the removal of the main access track.

We included the area that had been a refuse tip because there had been some quite unique natural regeneration of a variety of flower species since the tip closed Liz Allan, project officer

The tip is part of 100 acres of land owned by Ceredigion council which was declared a nature reserve in 1999.

The meeting, organised by Ceredigion County Council's Coast and Countryside section, which manages the Pendinas and Tanybwlch Local Nature Reserve with the help of local people.

Active management

The county council's project officer, Liz Allan, said the reserve was an interesting mix of habitats including shingle ridge, hay meadow, scrub-covered slopes.

It is also part of an Aberystwyth landmark - the Pendinas hill fort.

"We included the area that had been a refuse tip because there had been some quite unique natural regeneration of a variety of flower species since the tip closed," she added.

As well as being an important feeding and breeding ground for birds, the tip has seen old tracks being filled in.

The dump lies at the bottom of Pendinas

"Some landscaping work has also been done so the area is now ready to come under active reserve management," said Mrs Allan.

The nature reserve has seen strong local support since its start, when more than 100 people turned up at the first public meeting to vote for the reserve to be designated.

Arthur Chater, a member of Pendinas and Tanybwlch Nature Reserve support group, said: "No-one has an axe to grind against any proposal, so all the options are open to what can be done at the tip," he said.

Artists Shelagh Hourahane and Lynne Denman, who have worked on other nature reserves, will attend Wednesday's meeting to discuss possible projects.