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01 November 2010
2009
Community leaders from all 7 parishes around Coniston Water and the Crake Valley, and representatives from local businesses and education centres, met with environmental agencies in September 2009 to establish a new community-based group, The Coniston and Crake Catchment Partnership, as a local branch of the South Cumbria Rivers Trust. The inaugural conference last September led to the formation of a Core Group of 16 to manage the Partnership, and produced from the Conference groups a set of guidelines and targets for the Partnership’s first year. The Chair and Secretary are Paul Chamberlain and Les Higgins. Membership of the Core Group includes the SCRT Chair and Manager, community representatives, three chairs of catchment parish councils, local businesses, education and outdoor activity centres, CEH, the National Park and National Trust. The Partnership has good working links with the FBA, the Environment Agency, CEH, and Lancaster University.
2010
- Adopt-a-Beck: 15 local community volunteers from the parishes surrounding Coniston Water and the Crake Valley are to undertake Riverfly training on 8th May at the FBA. The volunteers will undertake to sample their local beck on a monthly basis, reporting their findings to the Partnership and the Environment Agency, and it is hoped, their Parish Council. When added to Riverfly sites already being sampled, this will cover all the major becks around the lake and down the River Crake to the estuary at Greenodd, to provide a near- comprehensive survey of the quality of the water entering the Coniston and Crake system from its headwaters. The Partnership initiative is being strongly supported by the Lake District National Park Authority and Cumbria County Council who are providing funding for the training and equipment.
- Most Parish Councils have been involved in identifying volunteers, and this “Adopt-a-Beck” scheme is part of an effort to raise awareness of water quality across the catchment: it is hoped Parish Councils will become involved in a subsequent project on the management of septic tanks in their area. Torver Parish Council has offered to work with the Partnership in promoting an initiative with tourism businesses to offer “starter packs” of non-phophate environmentally sensitive detergents in holiday cottages in the area. The packs would be accompanied by leaflets from SCRT/CCCP explaining the need for non-phosphate detergents.
- An Education Group, chaired by Geoff Cooper, who manages the Low Bank Ground Outdoor Education Centre on the lake, has been set up to involve young people locally and from away in beck surveys and sampling, and increase their awareness of water quality. The group is considering involvement in the Opal project being introduced nationally by the Field Studies Council, which provides a stillwaters equivalent to Riverfly, and is particularly suitable for young people.
- The Centre for Ecology and Hydrology have agreed to carry out two-monthly testing of water samples for the Partnership on Yewdale, Church, Torver, and Foudry becks, and the River Crake above Bouthray Bridge to identify the main sources of enrichment within the catchment. First samples have already been taken, and will thus provide a base for records in advance of United Utilities installing a phosphate stripper at Coniston Wastewater Treatment Works on Church Beck.
CEH and the Environment Agency have made available their research publications on the catchment, and this is being collated by Ben James of CEH, who is their representative on the Core Group.
- Mark Southern and Ben Lamb have established a pro-forma database of the type, number, and ownership of all farms within the catchment, and are developing a consultative group of farmers and land managers to plan a Farmers’ Meeting for later in the year.
- The National Park has provided access to its GIS mapping facility in order to help create an interactive catchment map that can be shown on the SCRT website. Licensing is presenting some difficulties and other approaches are being explored.
- Paul Chamberlain and Les Higgins attended the Eden Rivers’ Trust Conference in March.
- The Partnership has been asked to join the committee of the Coniston Flood Forum. A site visit with the Environment Agency has led to proposals for some limited clearing of gravel on Church Beck and some areas of bank repair on Church and Yewdale Becks. The Agency has agreed to some investigative work to explore possibilities of tree planting in the upper reaches of the becks to reduce erosion and improve floodwater retention.
- The Partnership has resolved four incidents of pollution this year by local negotiation; in one case intervention was necessary from the EA and SCRT.
- Contacts have been made with University of Lancaster and Hull International Fisheries Institute, who have expressed interest in MPhil and MSc students carrying out research to identify appropriate improvement strategies on the catchment. Areas for research have not yet been agreed, but a date has been set for an exploratory discussion with Nick Chappel of Lancaster University. Advice and support in this area from SCRT Executive would be gratefully received
- Les Higgins and Ben James carried out certified electro-fishing training last year, and a programme of electro-fishing on the catchment is being planned for this summer.
- The SCRT’s new Invasives Officer, Bekka Close, has been approached to work with the Partnership on invasive species in the catchment; a programme of volunteer activities is being planned.
- The Partnership is now actively seeking funding to appoint a part-time Co-ordinator
2011