Blog post by Alex Farquhar, Freshwater Campaigns and Advocacy Officer.
The Angling Trust’s Water Quality Monitoring Network (WQMN) is in its 5th year – what has it achieved and what lies ahead?
The WQMN is a coalition of anglers and environmental groups who regularly monitor water quality in their local rivers. Since its launch in 2021, the WQMN has grown to 800 volunteers who operate across 76 river catchments. In May, it reached 60,000 water quality measurements, combining those taken for phosphate, ammonia, nitrate, electrical conductivity, and water temperature.
What has the data shown?
The water samples have built up a detailed picture of the grim state of our freshwater habitats. In our most recent annual report, 41% of sites breached good ecological status for phosphate, 50% of samples showed signs of nitrate pollution, and ammonia concentrations reached a 3-year high.
Our online map allows you to see results on your local river, across multiple or individual sites. Looking at the Ribble, most sites fell below the advised upper limit for good ecological status of 0.306ppm. But, one site stands out at Gisburn, with 5 measurements peaking well above 0.306ppm, likely due to sewage spills from the nearby outfall.
We spoke with Staincliffe Angling Club, who have just over a mile of fishing on what’s known as the Long Preston Deeps, with becks coming in at top and bottom of the stretch. They have been monitoring for 3 years, contributing to the analysis shown above. They joined to answer the question of whether the water flowing through a deeper slower stretch would have a marked difference on the water quality. Over the years, they have noticed a decline in the amount of Ranunculus weed growing in the top and bottom shallows along with about a 75-yard stretch in the middle of their water.
Having gathered the data, they were quite surprised that the water quality was far better than expected (which is good news!) and there was no discernible difference between top and bottom. There are still plenty of good quality fish in their stretch, with Trout, Grayling and Chub frequently caught.
What if the data reveals pollution?
The headlines of the past few years don’t lie – pollution is rampant, and the data collected by many volunteers has helped bring the scale of the pollution to light. As the data near Gisburn STW’s revealed, there are pollution hotspots on the Ribble waiting to be revealed.
WQMN data has been a key campaigning tool for groups all over the UK. A great example lies in the Warwickshire Avon catchment, who have brought pollution to light, and shared it with the local community, regulators and government.
Having established themselves in the local community, Avonvale River Action group have developed strong relationships with local councillors, their local MP, the Environment Agency, and Severn Trent Water. Data demonstrating pollution can open the door to conversations with decisionmakers with the power to create change in river catchments.
Nearby on the Severn, WQMN volunteers’ relentless data-driven campaigning has led to Severn Trent Water installing ‘phosphate strippers’ at one of the most polluting STWs, which hugely reduce the pollution entering the river for the site, benefitting fish, fishing, and the environment. To find out more about the ways data can be turned into campaigns, take a look at the 3rd Annual WQMN Report.
The big picture
In the 2019 election, few party manifestoes took river pollution seriously. Fast forward to 2024 and every major party held fixing river pollution at the centre. This change was brought about in no small part through citizen scientists revealing the scale of the crisis, engaging their community, and demanding change.
Pollution, especially from sewage, is at the forefront of the public psyche. Yet, public outrage greatly outstrips the pace of change from Government.
There are two things we can do to keep the pressure on. First, we can keep river pollution relevant by revealing pollution, dissemination amongst the community and media, and extend the window of opportunity – where river pollution is taken seriously from grassroots to Government. Second, we can campaign for change now. Local groups have demonstrated how real change can occur when the alarm bell is raised, and many national campaign groups are forcing the Government to go further, faster, in meeting the true scale of the pollution crisis.
How to get involved?
If you are interested in joining the WQMN to find out what pollution levels are on your local stretch of the river, then please get in touch via aap@anglingtrust.net.
