"The celebrations recognise 50 years of cultural diversity, landscape heritage, wildlife conservation, spectacular geology and natural history in an ever changing world where threats to the natural environment are constantly round the corner.

To commemorate this anniversary, the National Park Authority is planning numerous celebrations throughout the year which will include exhibitions, events, publications, new educational and learning experiences, not to mention a new logo and the creation of a new Conservation Trust which will provide a lasting legacy for the Park.

The new logo was launched in January 2007, and will be used to represent the Park throughout the year, as specific National Park events and activities are marked with the numbers '5-0'.

The main celebration event will take place on the weekend of 6 July, 2007, where it is hoped that the night sky will be brought to life by the age old tradition of lighting beacons on mountain tops within the Park.

Brecon Beacons National Park is an instantly recognisable landscape which is proud to be the only UK National Park with a UNESCO Geopark within its boundary.

This unique designation affords additional protection to our category five landscape.

Our anniversary is also a great opportunity for everyone to learn about the Park's heritage and how we can all strive to become better custodians of the landscape we've inherited.

Celebrating 50 years is truly commendable and makes us appreciate our history and think about what we have achieved and what we hope to achieve in the next 50 years.

It is a time to reflect and pay tribute to the perseverance, dedication and aspirations of many men and women who believed that this area was worth protecting for our future generations.

National Parks in England and Wales were created by the 1949 National Parks & Access to the Countryside Act. The first ten parks were set up between 1951 and 1957 - with Brecon Beacons National Park as the tenth area in Wales and England to be given such status in 1957.

At that time the Parks' twin purposes were to protect areas of spectacular landscape and provide recreation opportunities for the general public.

This was revised under the Environment Act 1995 and National Parks now have two statutory purposes: - to conserve and enhance the natural beauty, wildlife and cultural heritage and - to promote opportunities for public enjoyment and understanding of its special qualities.

The Act also requires National Park Authorities - to foster the economic and social well-being of communities living within the National Park Brecon Beacons National Park is a landscape that offers a legacy of unparalleled proportions with spectacular mountain ranges, internationally renowned geology, bountiful wildlife and diverse recreational opportunities.

It contains some of the most spectacular and distinctive upland formations in southern Britain and covers an area of 1347 sq km (520 sq miles).

These amazing formations have now been officially recognised as one of the most important geological landscapes in Europe. In October 2005, Brecon Beacons National Park Authority became the first National Park in the UK to be awarded membership of the highly prestigious European Geopark Network and given UNESCO Global Geopark recognition for the Fforest Fawr area.

Since 1957, Brecon Beacons National Park has remained relatively unaltered - largely due to the commitment of the farmers and landowners who have shaped the countryside for generations.

Brecon Beacons National Park Authority owns about 13.5% of the land within the National Park - which amounts to approximately 19,000 hectares.

The land owned by other public bodies includes the Forestry Commission, Welsh Water, the National Trust and the Countryside Council for Wales. Some 70% of the land within the Park is privately owned and commons make up 35% of the National Park.

In April 1996, Brecon Beacons National Park Authority came into being, when it replaced the former Brecon Beacons National Park Committee which had managed the Park since 1974.

The last decade has been fundamentally important in terms of defining the Park and the landscape you see today, as well as shaping our future on the world stage.

We have seen many successes including the designation of Fforest Fawr, the formation of the Beacons Way 100 mile route, the implementation of the CROW Act, our BHS award for best access and locally, the launch of new online planning system.

Achievements however, come off the back of hard work and we have seen many threats to the National Park that we continue to ward off today and remain vigilant against.

We have all lived through the horrors of Foot and Mouth, the possible future threats of sand and gravel extraction and more recently, the proposed gas pipeline.