Latest EA News Roundup

Environment Agency boosts eel stocks in Yorkshire and Derbyshire

The Environment Agency’s fisheries team will next week be stocking nearly 70,000 elvers at two locations in Yorkshire and Derbyshire to give a helping hand to this increasingly threatened species.

On Monday 26 March officers will stock the River Aire at Rodley with 63,000 elvers, and a further 6,000 in a lake at The Avenue Washlands Nature Reserve in Chesterfield.

European eel stocks have been in major decline since the 1970s and the number of young eels reaching our shores are thought to have fallen by more than 95 per cent.

Jerome Masters, fisheries officer at the Environment Agency said: “Stocking eels into waters that they can no longer reach by themselves will increase the number of eels returning to their spawning grounds. Stocking is very important for local biodiversity and eels form an important link in the food chain as both predators and prey.”

More elvers will be stocked at The Avenue Washlands Nature Reserve next year as part of an extensive restoration programme at the former coking and chemical works site.

This work is part of the Environment Agency’s National Eel Management Plan, which aims to survey and provide safe habitats for eels to live. For further information please click here

Water company prosecuted for illegal discharges from from sewage treatment works

South West Water was today ordered to pay £ 4,424 in fines and costs for releasing poor quality effluent from a sewage treatment works in North Devon. The case was brought by the Environment Agency.

Pyworthy Sewage Works near Holsworthy is owned and operated by South West Water. The company is permitted to discharge treated sewage into a nearby watercourse – the Derril Water. Effluent must be of a certain standard to protect the receiving water from pollution.

The Environment Agency regularly samples the effluent to ensure the treatment works complies with the conditions of its discharge consent.

Samples are taken 12 times a year and limits set for certain chemicals such as Ammonia, which is extremely toxic to river life. An allowance is made for a certain number of failures each year. The number of failures permitted at Pyworthy is two.

The Derril Water is a high quality river suitable for salmon and sea trout. Both these species of fish are vulnerable to pollution.

‘Sewage treatment works have the potential to pollute, so it is important water companies operate in such a way so as to ensure these works fully comply with the conditions of their discharge consents,’ said Redwynn Sterry for the Environment Agency.

South West Water, of Peninsula House, Rydon Lane, Exeter, was today fined £ 3,200 and ordered to pay £ 1,224 costs by North Devon magistrates after pleading guilty to an offence under Section 85(6) of the Water Resources Act 1991 of breaching a condition of its discharge consent at Pyworthy Sewage Treatment Works on January 25, 2006 and June 15, 2006,

Environment Agency boosts fish stocks in West Yorkshire

Environment Agency officers will be releasing thousands of fish into the River Aire next week to boost stocks in the region’s rivers.

Around 2,000 grayling will be brought from the Environment Agency’s fish farm in Nottinghamshire and released into the Aire at Bingley and Silsden Bridge on Wednesday, 28th March.

The grayling, which are around a year old, will be brought to their new homes on a six-wheeled fish transporter.

Fisheries technical officer Richard Atkinson said:

“Grayling is native to the River Aire and we want to see their numbers continue to increase in that part of the catchment. This river is the ideal place to release the fish and give a further boost to stocks of this important coarse fish.”

The exercise is part of a three-year programme which targets rivers that would benefit most from restocking.

A study is under way into how pollution from natural run-off water may affect the quality of shellfish grown in shallow marine environments.

“A unique and scientifically robust study in the River Fal will help us to understand the river and its catchments,” said Steve Kestin, manager of the shellfish farming business Cornish Mussels.

In general, he said, the river had a high-quality environment, was well protected and economically important to many oyster fishermen, mussel-growers and shellfish processors, but what threat the run-off water posed to their future was as yet unknown.

Over the past year the river has suffered pollution incidents and periods of declining water quality, but there is no good information about why and how those problems occur. Prompted by requests from mussel – growers and the oyster fishermen, the study aims to find why the water quality is being affected.

Mr Kestin, who is helping with the study at his mussel farm in King Harry Passage, added:

“I’m delighted to see that a definitive study is going on to find out more about the river and hopefully identify the sources of pollution which caused the seasonal downgrade in water quality classification from Grade B to C.”

Deputy port health officer for Falmouth and Truro, Gary Cooper, who is helping with the daily water sampling, said:

“The measurement of water quality which affects the shellfisheries is a concern of Port Health and we’re very keen to see what the results show.This is a necessary study to target resources to improve water quality in the Fal Estuary.”

Salmon have been introduced to the River Thames after experts declared the water clean enough for the fish to breed – after almost 200 years.

The young salmon, were released into the Thames tributary, Lambourne river, at Welford, near Newbury, Berks.

Thames salmon died out in the 1830s, with salmon from other sources, which do not breed there, present from 1974, the Environment Agency (EA) said.

It is hoped a salmon population will be back in the River Thames in 5-10 years.

An EA spokesperson said the new salmon should stay in the river for a year before heading downstream through London, and up to Greenland before coming back to breed.

Darryl Cilfton-Dey, of the Environment Agency, said:

“People do fish for salmon on the Thames but the population is so small at the moment that there’s not a great deal of chance of catching one.

“Hopefully if these come back, and if they breed and if the young from those come back, then in a few year’s time there’ll be quite a few salmon around.”

Salmon eggs, about 5,000, were incubated and 2cm (0.8in) long baby salmon introduced to the river.

New strategy on water abstraction

The Environment Agency has published the first ever policy for managing water in rivers and streams in West Dorset.

The newly published Catchment Abstraction Management Strategy (CAMS) for the West Dorset area is now available and sets out the policy for managing water resources on the Rivers Char, Brit, Asker, Bride and Wey over the next six years.

The CAMS document outlines how the Environment Agency will deal with new applications for surface and groundwater abstraction licences.

The strategy has been compiled by the Environment Agency and a group of stakeholders including those representing local anglers, farmers, tourism, Wessex Water and the Dorset Wildlife Trust.

‘It is the first time such as assessment has been done in the West Dorset area and is a major step forward in managing water resources. It clearly sets out our plan for managing the catchment over the next six years and how we will address abstraction pressure,’ said Andy Gardiner for the Environment Agency.

With demands on river water and groundwater increasing, the Environment Agency is taking a lead in looking at the way we use water and how it affects the natural environment.

Three of the five Water Resource Management Units identified in the West Dorset Streams catchment have some ‘water available’ for further abstraction at low flows, one has ‘no water available’ at low flows and the River Wey is classified as ‘over-abstracted’ at low and medium flows.

The CAMS document is now available at www.environment-agency.gov.uk/cams

Solution in sight for sewage discharges in the Thames

The Environment Agency today welcomed the Government’s announcement ofthe improvement to London’s sewerage system, which crosses a significanthurdle towards the River Thames being free from weekly sewagedischarges.

The Government announced its support for a single 30km tunnel, runningbetween Hammersmith in the west and Beckton in the east, capturing theunsatisfactory sewage discharges into the Thames, which will go forwardfor planning and funding.

Barbara Young, Chief Executive of the Environment Agency, said:

“Our world class city needs a sewerage system that takes it out of the 19thcentury, brings it up to the standards of other EU and UK cities, andstops raw sewage discharges into the river virtually every week.

“This option offers the best value for money and the environment. Itgives us the greatest flexibility and will prevent overflows whereverrain falls over London. It will cope with future development in Londonand climate change. We also believe it is the only option that fullymeets the requirements of the European Urban Waste Water Directive.”

Barbara Young added:

“This is undoubtedly the worst sewage pollutionproblem in the UK. Some 32 million tonnes of sewage enter the Thames viathese overflows each year. The Thames is one of London’s greatest assets- but it has experienced a history of abuse and pollution. The Victorianengineer Joeseph Bazalgette put the first improvements in place toprotect the river and today – some 150 years later, we need to finishthe job.

“We are pleased that we have made a big step forward towards deliveringthe right environmental solution for the river and will work with ourpartners to ensure progress is made quickly.”

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