EBBW VALE, urban district, Monmouthshire, England, 21 m. N.W. of Newport, on the G.W. and L.M.S. lines. Pop. (1931) 31,695. The town lies near the head of the Ebbw valley, nearly 1,00o f t. above sea-level. Its position on the northern outcrop of the South Wales coalfield made it, first of all, an important iron smelting area, and subsequently a coal-mining centre. The ex tended use of coal and new processes in smelting brought about the establishment of one of the most important steel works in South Wales. Distance from the coast and trade depression after the World War have caused decline and distress.