Water for life and livelihoods - WordPress.com · 2013. 6. 28. · Environment Agency, Thames River Basin District: Challenges and choices, June 2013 3 Foreword The Thames River Basin

Thames River Basin District: Challenges and choices Summary of significant water management issues A consultation

Water for life and livelihoods

We are the Environment Agency. We protect and improve the environment and make it a better place for people and wildlife. We operate at the place where environmental change has its greatest impact on people’s lives. We reduce the risks to people and properties from flooding; make sure there is enough water for people and wildlife; protect and improve air, land and water quality and apply the environmental standards within which industry can operate. Acting to reduce climate change and helping people and wildlife adapt to its consequences are at the heart of all that we do. We cannot do this alone. We work closely with a wide range of partners including government, business, local authorities, other agencies, civil society groups and the communities we serve.

Published by: Environment Agency Horizon House Deanery Road Bristol BS1 5AH Email: [email protected] www.environment-agency.gov.uk © Environment Agency 2013 All rights reserved. This document may be reproduced with prior permission of the Environment Agency.

Further copies of this report are available from our publications catalogue: http://publications.environment-agency.gov.uk or our National Customer Contact Centre: T: 03708 506506

Email: [email protected].

This consultation has been produced to comply with the requirements of The Water Environment (Water Framework Directive) (England and Wales) Regulations 2003, Regulation 12(1)(b) to “…not less than two years before the beginning of the plan period, publish a summary of the significant water management matters … for consideration in relation to the river basin district”.

http://publications.environment-agency.gov.uk/

http://publications.environment-agency.gov.uk/

mailto:[email protected]


Environment Agency, Thames River Basin District: Challenges and choices, June 2013 3

Foreword The Thames River Basin District is one of the most well-known river basins, with London at its heart and the River Thames flowing through it. The River Thames flows from the stunning rural limestone hills of the Cotswolds to the international shipping gateway of the Thames Estuary. Waters in this river basin district support a wealth of wildlife; provide employment, food and drinking water; as well as opportunities for fishing, walking, boating and other recreational activities. These are some of the many reasons people choose to live here and why people from all over the world come to visit.

Many people already benefit from the water environment. It is not surprising, therefore, that much of the water environment has been significantly changed by man for business and industrial growth, the need for more and better protection against floods, the development of important transport links and the way people work in rural areas. However, some waters are still in a natural state and their habitats have been well protected. With future growth and development inevitable, the pressure on the natural environment will increase further.

In safeguarding the water environment for the future, considerable progress has been made in understanding the problems in the river basin. I am proud of the work that communities and businesses are doing to improve the water environments in their area. This includes action to reduce pollution, restoring rivers and wetland habitats, removing structures in waters so that fish can move more easily, and managing demand for water. In the face of a growing population, changing climate and challenging economic times, I know that this work is not straightforward and there is much more that needs to be done. In building on what has already been achieved, it is essential to continue to focus on the significant priority issues affecting the water environment.

People should continue to enjoy the water environment whilst understanding the need to protect it. We need to make choices about creating a better water environment for everyone.

I believe the best way to do this is to bring together everyone’s thoughts about the biggest challenges waters face and what to do about them. There are challenges, but there is a lot to be done by working together. This can only happen by knowing what matters to people, sharing understanding of the water environment and its problems, and that includes what's important to you. Improvements should make a real and valued difference. Together we can make the right choices about how to tackle the challenges to the benefit of the environment, the economy and society.

Over the next six months we, the Environment Agency, are consulting widely. We want to hear from anyone with a connection to or opinion about their water environment. This document is not a plan of action; it does not provide a detailed and comprehensive list of all the significant water management issues here and solutions to them. It describes what the evidence tells us are the main issues for the river basin and in each catchment. More importantly, this consultation is about getting your views. We want to know what you think the issues are, the best way to solve them and what should be done first. So, I hope you will join the discussion and help decide what the future holds for the Thames River Basin District.

Howard Davidson

Regional Director, South East


Contents FOREWORD ...................................................................................................................... 3

1 YOUR VIEWS COUNT ................................................................................................. 6

2 SUPPORTING INFORMATION ..................................................................................... 7

3 WATER – A VITAL RESOURCE ..................................................................................... 8

4 RIVER BASIN MANAGEMENT PLANNING – THE BENEFITS ........................................... 9

5 THE CATCHMENT BASED APPROACH .........................................................................10

6 THE THAMES RIVER BASIN DISTRICT .........................................................................11

Overview .............................................................................................................................. 11

Current condition .................................................................................................................. 12

Protected areas .................................................................................................................... 13

7 THE SIGNIFICANT WATER ISSUES ..............................................................................15

Physical modifications .......................................................................................................... 17

Pollution from waste water ................................................................................................... 18

Pollution from towns, cities and transport ............................................................................. 19

Changes to natural level and flow of water ........................................................................... 20

Invasive non-native species ................................................................................................. 21

Pollution from rural areas ..................................................................................................... 22

SUMMARY OF POSSIBLE ACTIONS BY ISSUE .....................................................................23

8 THE CATCHMENTS IN THE THAMES RIVER BASIN DISTRICT ........................................25

Responding to the consultation at catchment level ............................................................... 26

Cherwell Catchment ............................................................................................................. 27

Colne Catchment .................................................................................................................. 28

Cotswold Catchment ............................................................................................................ 29

Darent and Cray Catchment ................................................................................................. 30

Kennet and Pang Catchment................................................................................................ 31

Loddon Catchment ............................................................................................................... 32

London Catchment ............................................................................................................... 33

Medway Catchment .............................................................................................................. 34


Mole Catchment ................................................................................................................... 35

North Kent Catchment .......................................................................................................... 36

Roding, Beam and Ingrebourne Catchment .......................................................................... 37

South West Essex Catchment .............................................................................................. 38

Thame Catchment ................................................................................................................ 39

Tidal Thames sub-catchment ............................................................................................... 40

Lower Thames Catchment ................................................................................................... 41

Upper Lee Catchment .......................................................................................................... 42

Vale of White Horse Catchment ........................................................................................... 43

Wey Catchment .................................................................................................................... 44

9 FURTHER INFORMATION ON THE SIGNIFICANT ISSUES ..............................................45

10 CONSULTATION INFORMATION ................................................................................47

Summary of consultation questions ...................................................................................... 47

How to respond .................................................................................................................... 47

What the Environment Agency will use the responses for .................................................... 48

How the Environment Agency will use your information........................................................ 48


1 Your views count The best way to protect and improve the water environment is by everyone being actively involved. This consultation is an important step in managing the water environment issues in the Thames River Basin District and gives you the chance to influence the approach in your local area.

This is a public consultation and we, the Environment Agency, welcome everyone's views.

We'd like to find out your views on:

• The significant issues that are limiting the benefits society gets from the water environment (the challenges).

• The best way to solve these issues and what should be done first (the choices).

This consultation describes the significant water issues in the Thames River Basin District and then focuses on these issues in each of the catchments. This offers you the opportunity to respond to this consultation at the level most appropriate to your expertise or interest.

If you want to respond to this consultation on a specific issue, then you may wish to just answer the questions for that particular section. If your focus is more on your local area, you may prefer to respond to the questions at the beginning of the catchment section and apply them to the area of your interest and expertise. You are, of course, welcome to do both.

We want to make sure that everyone has the opportunity to contribute to river basin planning. By responding to this consultation, your views will help shape and develop the draft of the next Thames River Basin Management Plan and ultimately, the final plan too. The draft river basin plan will set out what actions we all need to consider, to address the significant issues discussed here, taking account of the results of this consultation and continuing investigation work. We will be asking you for your views on the draft plan in 2014.

The updated, final Thames River Basin Management Plan, which will be published in December 2015, will describe the cost effective actions that businesses, water users and organisations will need to do to protect and improve the water environment.

We would like you to respond to the following consultation questions: The significant issues (pages 15 - 24)

1 What do you consider to be the biggest challenges facing waters in the Thames River Basin District?

2 Do you agree with our description of how the significant issues are affecting the water environment and society? Please specify which issue(s) your response refers to and provide relevant information to help explain your answer.

3 How do you think these issues should be tackled, and what would you choose to do first? Please specify which issue(s) your response refers to. Please consider any resource implications.

The catchments (pages 25 – 44)

4 How are the significant issues in a catchment affecting the water environment and society? Please specify which catchment(s) your response refers to and provide relevant information to help explain your answer. 5 How do you think the challenges affecting each catchment should be tackled and what would you do first? Please specify which catchment(s) your response refers to. Please consider any resource implications.


Working together to improve the River Loddon

There are many ways to respond to this consultation (see page 47 for more details), but if you have any difficulties please call D-J Gent on 0118 953 5716 or email [email protected].

This consultation runs from 22 June to 22 December 2013.

We will issue a response document by March 2014. This will summarise the comments we received and what will happen as a result.

2 Supporting information

This consultation document is a summary of the information the Environment Agency and others have collected and analysed. If you want to know more, throughout this document you will be sign posted to other, more detailed sources of information.

To help you respond to this consultation you might like to read the Facts and Statistics document. To view this, please visit: http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx

To help you understand the role of this consultation in the context of writing the next Thames River Basin Management Plan, you might like to read about river basin districts, catchments, water bodies and the river basin management planning process. To do this, please see our website at http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/33106.aspx

There is also a consultation on the nationally significant water management issues called “England’s Waters: Challenges and Choices” which is referred to throughout this document. To view and respond to questions in this consultation, please visit https://consult.environment-agency.gov.uk/portal/ho/wfd/water/choices. Please note the consultation on this national document closes on 22 September 2013.


http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx



https://consult.environment-agency.gov.uk/portal/ho/wfd/water/choices


3 Water – a vital resource

Water is essential for life and livelihoods. The average person in the UK uses 150 litres of water every day in their home. If you include all the water used in growing and manufacturing the things used or consumed, each of us uses on average around 4,600 litres (over 1,000 gallons) of water per day, over 60% from sources in the UK.

Water allows the natural environment to flourish, and businesses, agriculture and the economy to grow and prosper. Rivers, lakes, estuaries, coastal areas, wetlands and water under the ground provide many different benefits to society – from supplying drinking water and supporting fisheries to providing an essential resource for business and agriculture, transport routes and a source of recreation that promotes wellbeing.

Healthy water environments also help protect the nation from floods and droughts and regulate the quality of the air and the climate. Everyone benefits from using water and enjoying the water environment, but it is essential that both are used and managed in a sustainable way. By doing this, the natural environment, business and economic growth will be protected and the long-term benefits to health and wellbeing improved.

Assessing the state of the water environment is now done in a comparable way across Europe, taking account of different natural conditions in each country’s local geography. A target of good status is the long-term aim, which is defined as a slight deviation from natural conditions associated with limited impacts from human activity. In England, fewer than a quarter of surface waters currently have a good ecology, either as good status, or the slightly modified target of good potential, which applies to waters that have been extensively engineered.

Graph 1 The proportion of waters in the Thames River Basin District in good condition in 2012 (based on assessments of the ecology, chemicals and for groundwater, the amount of water).


4 River basin management planning – the benefits

In December 2009 we, the Environment Agency, published the current Thames River Basin Management Plan. With our partners, we are now working to review and update it. We will publish the revised plan in December 2015, following Government approval and sign-off by the Secretary of State. This consultation is the first stage in preparing this plan

Understanding the benefits society obtains from protecting and improving the water environment is at the heart of river basin management planning. Understanding and capturing information on these benefits will help determine the quality of the water environment society wants and can afford to achieve.

The updated plan will explain how decisions affecting the water environment are made. The plan is important because it will show businesses and other water users what they need to do. It will not be a full, detailed list of actions. Instead, it will provide the basis for agreeing detailed work plans at places important to people.

The updated plan will take into account wider water issues such as the need to minimise the risk of flooding, and the impact that a changing climate may have on rainfall, temperature and water availability, which are in some cases managed with the help of other, more detailed plans.

Significant water

management issue

Sector responsible for the significant water management issue

Agric

ultu

re &

rura

l la

nd m

anag

emen

t

Angl

ing

&

cons

erva

tion

Envi

ronm

ent A

genc

y

Fish

erie

s

Hydr

opow

er

Indu

stry

Loca

l gov

ernm

ent

Nav

igat

ion

Urb

an &

tran

spor

t

Wat

er in

dust

ry

No

rele

vant

sect

or

Pollution from rural areas

192 0

Pollution from towns, cities &

transport

6 97 3

Changes to level and flows

19 1 1 1 3 2 4 37 46

Invasive non-native species

85

Physical modification

57 6 16 5 2 5 3 16 79 4 183

Pollution from waste water

4 27 1 39 230 21

Table 1 Summary of the sectors identified as contributing to the issues preventing Thames River Basin District waters reaching good condition (based on 2013 information on reasons for failure collected during investigations carried out by the Environment Agency; numbers in table are the numbers of affected waters).


5 The catchment based approach The Environment Agency is constantly exploring better ways of involving people, communities, organisations and businesses to make a difference to the health of waters and habitats.

Following your feedback which highlighted that involving people at a 'catchment' level is often the most effective way of working together, this document has information on each catchment within the Thames River Basin District.

A catchment is an area with several, often interconnected bodies of water, such as rivers, lakes, groundwater or coastal waters.

By working together in catchments we aim to:

• Understand how the issues in that catchment interact.

• Understand how the issues are affecting the current local benefits and future uses of water.

• Involve local people, communities, organisations and businesses in making decisions local to them, by sharing evidence.

• Work out what issues to tackle as a priority.

• Build towards a ‘catchment plan’, a simple statement of options to protect and improve the catchment.

To find out further information about river basin districts, catchments, water bodies and the river basin management planning process please see our website at http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/33106.aspx



6 The Thames River Basin District Overview The Thames River Basin District covers an area of 16,133 square kilometres. Its landscapes range from limestone hills to wide floodplains, from Chilterns chalk to the tidal River Thames and south Essex coastal marshes. The river basin district is mostly rural to the west and very urban to the east where it is dominated by Greater London. The River Thames rises from the limestone at Thames Head in the Cotswolds and flows for 354 kilometres to the North Sea at Shoeburyness. Many rivers and streams flow into the River Thames along its course.

Figure 1 Map of the Thames River Basin District

Over 15 million people live in the Thames River Basin District, with many more coming to work there or visit. The Government predicts that, mainly due to population growth, the number of households in the South East of England will grow by 28% by 2031, the highest growth rate in England. Planned and managed well, growth and regeneration provide an opportunity to improve the water environment.

The Thames River Basin District has an average annual rainfall of less than 700 mm, which is at least 300 mm less than the UK annual long term average. The River Thames provides two thirds of Greater London’s drinking water, and groundwater is also very important. Water companies supply around 40% of water for people and businesses in the wider river basin.

The Thames River Basin District has many significant wetland and wildlife sites, from chalk streams such as the River Kennet, Lambourn and Wandle to internationally important sites such as the Thames Estuary and Marshes. Unsurprisingly, the river basin district supports a wealth of wildlife, some of it within legally protected areas. See 'Protected areas' later in this section (on page 13) for more information.


The River Thames and the rivers that flow into it are very important to those who live in, work in, or visit the Thames River Basin District. These waters are a valuable economic and recreational asset in the river basin and provide vital amenities such as drinking water as well as opportunities for recreational activities. In the 16th and 17th centuries locks and weirs were installed in many rivers in order to aid navigation and generate energy but have had the effect of raising water levels and changing habitats. These changes supported the development of major towns and cities including Oxford, Reading, Guildford, Maidstone and London as well as ports in London and the Medway, which are still important international maritime trade centres.

Current condition The Environment Agency uses the term ‘water bodies’ to help understand and manage the water environment. A ‘water body’ is part, or the whole, of a river, lake, groundwater or coastal water. We assess the condition of these water bodies through a monitoring process, which produces an annual ‘classification’ or health check for that water body. The classification is based on both the biological and chemical condition of the water body and assesses how close it is to its 'natural state'.

There are many pressures that can affect the condition of a water body. Controlling these pressures to make sure that there is no deterioration from the water body’s current condition, and the resulting benefits society gets from them, is the first priority of river basin management planning. In the first Thames River Basin Management Plan in 2009, 17% of groundwater bodies and 23% of other water bodies such as rivers and lakes achieved a good or high condition.

In the first Thames River Basin Management Plan, a number of actions to manage the pressures on the water environment were identified for us and others to implement (in Annex C of the plan). Currently, approximately 95% of theses actions have been started or are now complete. Delivering many of these actions has only been possible through adopting a collaborative approach. You can see the ‘Programme of measures for Water Framework Directive Cycle 1’ on our website. To view, please visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/125035.aspx.

We, the Environment Agency, have monitored and investigated many of the water bodies that are not in good condition and identified the reasons they fail including the significant water management issue that is causing the failure. Since 2009, over 1,600 investigations have been carried out in the river basin district. The knowledge and understanding of the issues affecting water bodies has improved significantly. You can find out more about these issues at the river basin scale in Section 7 ‘The significant water issues’ section and at a catchment scale in Section 8 ‘The catchments in the Thames River Basin District’ of this document.

As a result of this knowledge, we are now in a better position to work with others to identify where the greatest environmental improvements can be made, which will provide the most benefits to everyone. So far, investigations suggest that nearly 40% of why water bodies are not in a good condition relate to physical changes to water bodies or to pollution from waste water.

The way water bodies in the Thames River Basin District, have been used for carrying away waste water and have been physically changed over past centuries, has often adversely affected habitats, plants and animals. Notable references from the historic record of the health of the River Thames include the ‘Great Stink’ of 1858, so bad that it closed Parliament; the tidal Thames being declared ‘biologically dead’ in the 1950s; the modification of habitats in up to 90% of river length particularly since the 1800s and including an intense




period from circa 1930 to 1980; and loss of salmon in the River Thames and other water bodies since 1832.

There are some significant challenges facing the water environment in the Thames River Basin District. These need to be addressed in order to get more natural habitats, and to protect and improve the water environment for fish, plants and other animals to live and grow now, and in the future. This will benefit all water users and allow people to enjoy their water environment for years to come, and give the nation's capital city the river befitting its international standing.

There continues to be a focus on action to improve the water environment. Today, the Thames River Basin District has businesses, groups and individuals dedicated to improving the water environment. There are many successful partnerships underway making local habitats better for people and wildlife.

Local Nature Partnerships aim to promote healthy natural environments and make environmental improvements. There are eight Local Nature Partnerships in the Thames River Basin District. There are also two Nature Improvement Areas in the river basin district. There are seven Local Enterprise Partnerships; these are between local authorities and businesses. They decide what the priorities should be for investment in roads, buildings and facilities. Local Enterprise Partnerships and Local Nature Partnerships are encouraged to work together to identify how business can help to achieve environmental improvements. You can find out more about these in Section 9 ‘Further information on the significant issues’ of this document.

The major facing the water environment and the challenges to improving the condition of the water bodies in the Thames River Basin District are described in Section 7.

For information on the latest classification results and other key statistics for the Thames River Basin District, see the Thames River Basin District: Facts and statistics document. To view, please visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx.

Protected areas There are many areas in the Thames River Basin District where the water environment is particularly important. These areas include rare wildlife habitats, bathing waters and areas where drinking water is abstracted. Known as ‘protected areas’, these areas are given particular legal protection. Protected areas are a priority for action to make sure that they meet their statutory conditions and can continue to provide their special uses.

There are different types of protected area, each with their own standards and objectives. In the Thames River Basin District there are:

• 93 Drinking Water Protected Areas

• Five shellfish waters, including three that overlap with the South East River Basin District. To view the consultation document for this river basin district, please visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140088.aspx.

• 16 bathing waters

• Nitrate Vulnerable Zones covering 77.7% of land area (subject to appeals)

• 22 Urban Waste Water Treatment Directive Sensitive Areas

• 14 water dependent Special Areas of Conservation, including Essex Estuaries, which is mainly in the Anglian River Basin District. To view the consultation document for this river basin district, please visit https://consult.environment-agency.gov.uk/portal/ho/wfd/water/choices.






• Seven water dependent Special Protection Areas, including Foulness (Mid-Essex Coast Phase 5), which is mainly in the Anglian River Basin District. To view the consultation document for this river basin district, please visit https://consult.environment-agency.gov.uk/portal/ho/wfd/water/choices.

More information about the protected areas is available in the Thames River Basin District: Facts and statistics document. To view, please visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx.





7 The significant water issues Working together with members of the Thames River Basin District Liaison Panel (a group of key partners), the Environment Agency have developed a list of what we believe are the most important issues that threaten the current and future uses of the water environment.

To do this, we assessed the pressures or potential issues caused by people now (for example, rivers polluted by farming or urban activities); in the past (rivers changed to provide power for industry or straightened for navigation); or in the future (abstracting more water to meet rising demand). We developed a number of issue headings and have grouped the issues/pressures under these. The graph below shows the number of water bodies that these issues are affecting (from our investigations programme to date).

Graph 2 Significant water management issues affecting water bodies in the Thames River Basin District

Note: based on 2013 information on reasons for failure collected during investigations carried out by the Environment Agency; numbers in graph are the numbers of affected waters. More than one significant issue may be recorded for a water body.

You can see other key statistics about significant issues affecting water bodies in the Thames River Basin District, in the Thames River Basin District: Facts and statistics document. To view, please visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx.

Significant water issues in the Thames River Basin District are:

• Physical modifications – changes to the natural habitat by people, for example redundant or poorly designed structures such as flood defences and weirs, and changes to the natural river channels for land drainage and navigation. These modifications cause changes to natural flow levels, and can result in excessive build up of sediment and the loss of the wildlife habitat.

• Pollution from waste water – society generates waste water that must be dealt with, but it can contain large amounts of nutrients (such as phosphorus and nitrates), ammonia, and other damaging substances.




• Pollution from towns, cities and transport – rainwater running over hard surfaces and carrying pollutants into waters, chemicals from contaminated land, and sewage from houses ‘misconnected’ to surface water drains leading to rivers rather than sewers leading to sewage works.

• Changes to the natural flow and level of water – taking too much water from rivers, canals, lakes and groundwater leaves less water to flow in the environment.

• Invasive non-native species – the effect on the health of native plants and animals from those originating from outside the UK and introduced to UK waters.

• Pollution from rural areas – the effects of agricultural practice and rural land management on the water environment (also known as 'diffuse rural pollution').

The next section looks at each of the significant issues in turn; explaining what it is, what's causing it and how it is limiting the benefits society gets from the water environment. We share our understanding of what is currently being done, what more could be done and what the priorities for action might be.

Tackling these issues will cost money. We want to work with others to look at the costs of possible actions and quantify the benefits of improving the condition of the water environment. Your comments now will help us do that. In summer 2014, we will consult on the results of this work and what it will mean for the long term objective (or condition) for each water body.

The Government will ultimately decide what the long-term objectives should be and when they should be achieved, by considering how affordable the actions are.

As well as considering the current state of the water environment it is also important to look at the future risks (potential impacts). The Environment Agency has produced risk assessments for each pressure affecting the water environment. You can access these risk assessments from the ‘Further information on the significant issues’ section of this document. To view, please visit section 9.

We would like to hear your thoughts on the following questions around the significant issues at the river basin district scale.

Consultation questions




You can share your thoughts and respond to similar questions for individual catchments in the Thames River Basin District in Section 8 ‘The catchments in the Thames River Basin District’ of this document.


Physical modifications People need rivers and estuaries to provide their water supply, carry away flood waters and remove their waste water. The water environment is valued for many reasons, including for navigation, fishing and other recreational activities which improve people's wellbeing and quality of life. Physical changes like widening, deepening and straightening have often helped rivers and estuaries to meet these needs and provide benefits, but have also changed their characteristics. Man made waters, like canals and reservoirs have been built for transport and to store water. These changes have helped towns and cities to develop and the economy to grow. However these changes can sometimes be at the expense of the quality of the water environment.

Physical modification is a widespread water management issue in the Thames River Basin District. Investigations show that flood protection structures and barriers to fish movement are the most significant challenges. Changes to the river bed, banks and floodplains of rivers and estuaries for flood protection can damage or reduce habitat for plants and animals to live and grow and can lead to increased flood risk elsewhere. Structures can stop wildlife moving freely between different parts of a river. The way sediment and flow is managed can alter how rivers and estuaries work naturally, make waters poorer and less attractive to people and nature, and can be expensive to maintain.

The people of the Thames River Basin District rightly expect rivers, estuaries, lakes and canals to be special places to visit and a valuable haven for wildlife to thrive. It is important to plan at the catchment scale, where appropriate, and consider the different needs of rural and urban areas. The challenge is to balance the needs of keeping communities safe and businesses working, with managing the water environment for people and wildlife.

Where rivers are already healthy, it is important that they are kept healthy to support recovery elsewhere. Where restoration is needed, working with others will be essential to make the most of funding and provide long lasting improvements for people, nature and the economy. This is happening at the Lee Valley Regional Park, which provides a ‘green lung’ for London, Essex and Hertfordshire and shows how important rivers are for urban communities. Restoration of the urban Mayesbrook and the River Wandle has shown that it is possible to provide space for water, wildlife and people. Property values can increase by up to 34% where new developments have access to green space. ‘Your Tidal Thames’ is a joint project between Thames 21 and Thames Estuary Partnership and shows how powerful a community approach to river management can be. Similarly, ‘Greening the Gateway: Kent and Medway’ is leading Local Nature Partnerships work in the Thames Gateway to drive positive change in the local natural environment. You can find out more about these projects in Section 9 ‘Further information on the significant issues’ of this document. Design of future changes to waters can be supported by developments in ‘green engineering’ options that work with the river’s natural characteristics. Some of these options are included in the Environment Agency’s Water Framework Directive Mitigation Measures Manual. To view, please visit: http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/homeandleisure/wildlife/119594.aspx.

The challenge is enormous and, with limited funding, we need to prioritise and learn from others’ best practice. However, this work is not without financial reward too. An assessment of the Mayesbrook Climate Change Park Project predicted that £7 of benefits to health, wellbeing and the environment will be provided for every £1 invested in restoration of the park. You can find out more about river restoration, techniques and examples in Section 9 ‘Further information on the significant issues’ of this document.

http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/homeandleisure/wildlife/119594.aspx


Pollution from waste water Every day, the 15 million people living in the Thames River Basin District produce enough domestic waste water to fill at least 900 Olympic size swimming pools.

Over the last 20 years in particular, water companies and industry have invested heavily in new infrastructure to contain and treat waste water to help protect and improve water quality.

Thames Water will complete its latest multi-million pound programme of improvements to its sewer networks and sewage treatment works in 2015. Southern Water’s investment programme includes improvements to water quality in the River Medway. Investigations show that in terms of sewage treatment works, phosphorus remains the biggest issue. Phosphorus in treated waste water in combination with pollution from rural areas will continue to limit ecological quality in some waters.

One of the most widespread effects of waste water pollution is due to its nutrient content. Phosphorus from waste water can cause algae to grow excessively in lakes and reservoirs and in sensitive rivers such as the River Kennet.

There is emerging evidence that some trace chemical contaminants in waste water, including metals such as copper or man made chemicals such as flame retardants, could be a threat to water life in some rivers and estuaries. By reducing the use of these chemicals, or by providing additional treatment of waste water, it should be possible to manage the risks.

In some towns and cities, rainwater flows into sewers that are not large enough to carry both sewage and lots of rainwater. Storm sewage overflows, which spill into rivers or estuaries, have been used on these sewers to prevent streets and houses being flooded with diluted sewage during wet weather. The impacts of sewer storm overflows on the environment can sometimes be dramatic; a storm over London in August 2004 triggered a massive release of untreated sewage estimated to have killed more than 100,000 fish in the Tidal Thames. A new multi-million pound storage tunnel planned for London will prevent most storm sewage overflows to the Tidal Thames and protect the estuary’s fish and other plants and animals.

The widespread flooding of sewers with groundwater in late 2012 and early 2013 also highlighted the need to reduce the amount of groundwater getting into sewers through cracks and joints in the sewer system. The capacity of many sewers will become insufficient with increased storm intensity due to climate change. Ofwat recognises that building bigger sewers to cope with higher flows is unlikely to be a sustainable solution and would be very expensive. Reducing the amount of rainwater and groundwater entering sewers will become increasingly preferable. However, in some very densely populated towns and cities, this might prove costly, disruptive, technically challenging and impractical.

Looking beyond 2015, there will be difficult decisions to make about the need for water companies and industry to do more. Where there is evidence that waste water discharges are harming water life, one option may be more advanced treatment of waste water. There will usually be other options to consider, such as keeping pollutants out of sewers or tackling polluted runoff to rivers from agricultural land. These options may be cheaper, but achieving results may be less certain. You can find out more about 'Pollution from rural areas' later in this section. If everyone uses less water at home and at work, an increasing population will not necessarily lead to more waste water entering rivers, estuaries and coastal waters. You can find out more in the ‘The water quality benefits of reducing domestic water consumption’ document. To view, please visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx.

Choosing the right options will involve understanding the balance between the expected costs and the likely benefits to the environment, society and the economy. The priorities for action include making sure that sewers and waste water treatment works can cope with an increasing population in a changing climate and tackling high nutrient levels in sensitive waters.




Pollution from towns, cities and transport Rainwater running off roofs, roads and other hard surfaces can carry pollutants. These include fine sediments, engine oil, exhaust emissions, detergents and road salt. This polluted water usually drains either through foul sewers to sewage treatment works, or through surface water sewers (storm drains) into rivers and estuaries, where it can harm animals and plants.

Approximately 17% of the Thames River Basin District is urbanised, covering about 271,000 hectares. London alone includes 9,200 miles of roads, and across the river basin there are hundreds of miles of overland railways, hundreds of industrial estates, and five international airports: Gatwick, Heathrow, Stansted, Luton and London City.

Road transport is a cause of water pollution in large urban areas. Oil and fuel spills, exhaust emissions and material from tyre wear and brake erosion all contribute to the problem. The Environment Agency has identified harmful effects from road runoff in 15 waterbodies. For example, in the river Cray in south east London, water quality and wildlife have been damaged by the build up of fine black silt from road drains. In other rivers, such as the Ravensbourne in north London, it appears that damage is being caused mostly from drainage from housing and industry.

Waste water drains from homes and workplaces are sometimes wrongly connected (misconnected) to surface water sewers instead of the public foul sewer. We have identified up to 37 urban watercourses where misconnections are causing pollution leading to poor water quality. These include the Wealdstone Brook in North Brent, Stonebridge Brook in Haringey and the Moselle Brook in Tottenham.

Working with us and local authorities, Thames Water has a continuing programme to tackle misconnections. However, preventing pollution is usually cheaper than dealing with the consequences. That's why raising public awareness of misconnections and the proper ways of disposing of liquid waste is so worthwhile. People need to be much more aware of the pollution that sewer misconnections cause, because tracing and rectifying them can be very time consuming and costly. To find out more about misconnections please visit the Connect Right website: http://www.connectright.org.uk/.

In a community initiative called the Yellow Fish Scheme, we are working to raise public awareness about disposing of oil and other liquid waste properly. To find out more about this scheme, please visit the Environment Agency website: http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/homeandleisure/pollution/water/120363.aspx.

Looking ahead, there will be opportunities to reduce water pollution and flood risk by building more sustainable drainage systems (SuDS) that slow, capture and clean up runoff in towns and cities. Examples of SuDS include green roofs, planters, grass swales and retention ponds. Redirecting rainwater from sewers to SuDS would also free up capacity in sewers and therefore reduce polluting storm sewage overflows. We will work with local authorities, in their role as SuDS Approval Bodies, to promote SuDS schemes in new developments. Where these schemes are not feasible there may be alternative approaches that use novel technologies to clean up contaminated runoff. For example, engineered sponge materials that remove pollutants from water are being trialled in road gullies and drains.

http://www.connectright.org.uk/

http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/homeandleisure/pollution/water/120363.aspx

http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/homeandleisure/pollution/water/120363.aspx


Changes to natural level and flow of water Water is precious. It is essential for life and livelihoods. However taking water from rivers or groundwater in the Thames River Basin District can have an impact on the environment. The water that is available and how it is used has to be managed very carefully as existing demands for water are already damaging some of the rivers in the Thames River Basin District.

Of all the rain that falls in the river basin, 18% (around 1,626 million cubic metres) is taken from the environment for people to use. Of this, 82% is taken for public water supply, 7% is used for agriculture and 8% is used by industry, including generating power. The remainder is made up of abstraction for other water uses. Not all the rain that falls is ‘available’ for us to use. There needs to be enough water to support healthy rivers and wetlands. It remains a challenge to store water during times when more is available, to use in the future.

Taking water from rivers and from groundwater (abstraction) means there is less water flowing in rivers. Reduced flow is the reason nearly 15% of the water bodies in the Thames River Basin District do not meet the ‘flow target’, which means they may not be capable of supporting a healthy environment.

The relationship between flow and the natural environment is complicated. Less flow in a river means that fewer species of fish, plants and insects might be able to survive there.

Pressure on rivers and groundwater is likely to increase with population growth, climate change and changes in lifestyle. The Government is predicting that there will be almost two million more people in the Thames River Basin District by 2035.

The Environment Agency and water companies are investigating 195 sites where taking water from the local area may be damaging the environment, and are looking at ways of reducing this potential harm. There are many options to consider, some of which are very expensive and difficult to do. Options include reducing the amount of water that is abstracted, storing water to use in times of drought, changing rivers to help the local habitat adapt to different flows and depths, replacing water from rivers with desalinated water from the sea, and encouraging people to use water more efficiently.

Reducing the amount of water taken from the environment can be difficult. For example, taking less water from one location will mean having to find somewhere else to take it from. Often using alternative sources can have other, less obvious, implications for the environment, such as needing to use more energy to pump water further. On average, every person in the Thames River Basin District uses 160 litres of water a day. By using water wisely at home, everyone can use less water to help reduce the amount of water taken from the environment. We are also currently working with water companies to see if they can share more water between themselves, reducing the need to find new sources of water.

Difficult decisions have to be made about whether society can afford to change abstraction licences to protect the environment, and whether doing this alone will be enough in the face of climate change. We suggest that the focus is placed on those areas where evidence shows that abstraction is causing the most damage to the environment and where solutions are cost effective and sustainable.


Invasive non-native species Plants and animals from outside the UK that are introduced to UK rivers and lakes pose a major risk to native wildlife, limit the health of the water environment and can spoil the amenity value that local communities enjoy when visiting and using their local rivers and lakes. In the Thames River Basin District species such as Signal Crayfish are widespread. Signal Crayfish can have a damaging effect on the other plants and animals that live in the river, through predation and spreading diseases such as crayfish plague, thus turning a healthy river into a poor environment for wildlife. Other species such as Mitten Crabs destroy habitats like reed beds and can cause river banks to collapse by burrowing into them. At least 22 of the 34 invasive non-native species known to cause the most harm to the water environment are present in rivers and lakes in the Thames River Basin District, including Floating Pennywort, Zebra Mussel, Topmouth Gudgeon, Water Fern and Parrot’s Feather. If nothing is done, it is predicted that all of the bodies of water in the Thames district will be at ‘high risk’ by 2050.It is difficult to estimate accurately the negative economic effect of these species, but nationally it is likely to be about £2 billion. You can find more information about this in a Defra commissioned report from CABI (2010) called ‘The Economic Cost of Invasive Non-native Species to the British Economy’. This report is available from Defra’s website. To view, please visit https://secure.fera.defra.gov.uk/nonnativespecies/index.cfm?sectionid=14. In 2011-12, the Environment Agency and its partners in the Thames River Basin spent £657,000 on controlling invasive species to limit the damage and spread of these species. To make sure work to control these species is effective, it is important to target those that are causing the most harm to the water environment. These are designated by the UK Water Framework Directive Technical Advisory Group, and methods described in the ‘Invasive Non Native Species Framework Strategy for Great Britain’ should be used. This report is available from Defra’s website and can be viewed at: https://secure.fera.defra.gov.uk/nonnativespecies/index.cfm?sectionid=55. As these species readily spread through rivers and lakes, actions must be co-ordinated across the catchment to provide the best results. An excellent example of this is the London Invasive Species Initiative, which is a group of government, academic and non-government organisations that map, forecast, prioritise and help plan invasive species work across the capital. You can find out more about this initiative on the London Biodiversity Partnership website. To view, please visit http://www.lbp.org.uk/LISI.html. Funding for this work within the Environment Agency is limited and the burden of controlling these species needs to be spread amongst all those who are responsible for managing our rivers and lakes, including landowners, anglers, pet shop trade, garden centres and statutory authorities. There is also a large role for academic institutions, voluntary groups and the general public. Therefore, a major challenge will be to co-ordinate agreed actions across different sectors, while making sure that any action is part of a catchment plan. To be successful, partnerships will need to work together across entire waterbodies. To make sure that money is spent in the right way and in the right place, there are difficult decisions to make. We need to assess if there are species that we should stop trying to remove or manage because as yet we don’t know how to or because it’s too expensive. Some of the most challenging species include non-native crayfish, Chinese Mitten Crab, Australian Swamp Stonecrop, Topmouth Gudgeon and Floating Pennywort. Other species may need managing in ways that could be contentious, such as introducing other non-native animals to control the invasive species. Many methods to control species are relatively new, so it may be necessary to wait to see if they are successful before implementing them more widely. This may put local wildlife at more risk in the meantime but not managing them properly could increase the spread of these species or be considered a waste of money. We are already tackling many of these species in the Thames river basin, and in 2011-2012 funded projects to help control species such as Himalayan Balsam, Giant Hogweed, Japanese Knotweed, Water Primrose and mink. To co-ordinate and target efforts more effectively we are developing a river basin wide non-native species steering group and strategy. As each species and catchment is different, there is no right answer or single solution to the problem, but co-ordinated and co-operative action will be essential.

https://secure.fera.defra.gov.uk/nonnativespecies/index.cfm?sectionid=14

https://secure.fera.defra.gov.uk/nonnativespecies/index.cfm?sectionid=55

http://www.lbp.org.uk/LISI.html


Pollution from rural areas Even though the Thames River Basin District is one of the most densely populated and urbanised parts of the UK, rural activities have a significant impact on the quality of water in the rivers, lakes and groundwater. Approximately 35% of the river basin is arable, 19% is grassland and a further 11% is woodland. Around 90% of the world’s chalk streams are found in England and the chalk streams in the Chilterns, North Downs and Berkshire Downs are very sensitive to pollution, and are protected areas. Pollution from rural areas is often called ‘diffuse rural pollution’ as there is not always a single identifiable source; it is the collective effect of pollutants over a large area. Environment Agency investigations suggest that 31% of water bodies in the river basin district are impacted by diffuse rural pollution, particularly phosphate, nitrate, pesticides and sediment pollution. Investigations, such as walking along the length of a river, to identify pollution sources, have shown that farming is the biggest single source of diffuse rural pollution. Other sources have also been identified, such as the road network, stables, golf courses and private sewerage systems. Diffuse rural pollution from arable and livestock farming contributes to the poor condition of at least 100 rivers in the river basin, such as the Rivers Evenlode and Rib. The over application of chemical fertilisers or organic manures from farms and stables are a major source of phosphate, nitrate and sediment. Phosphate and nitrate pollution can make some plants and algae grow too much. This means there is less space, oxygen and light available for other plants and animals to live. It is important that farmers and land managers follow best practice to maintain and improve the condition of their soil and follow plans to manage nutrients, pesticides and manure, and store slurry correctly to limit potential pollution. Poor farming practices such as ploughing down a hill instead of across it (in certain places), compacting soils by using heavy machinery in wet conditions or allowing livestock to damage riverbanks can result in soil being washed into the river. Excess sediment is harmful as it affects the amount of light which can penetrate the water and can smother areas where fish lay their eggs. It also carries pollutants, such as phosphates, from the land to the water. There is a sediment matters handbook available from the Environment Agency website. To view, please visit http://evidence.environment-agency.gov.uk/FCERM/Libraries/FCERM_Documents/SCHO0411BTWE-E-E.sflb.ashx. Drinking water can also be polluted by nitrate from fertilisers, manures, and private sewerage systems, and by pesticides (such as slug pellets). Water companies need to remove these pollutants to make it safe for people to drink. This costs money and energy and increases the price of domestic water bills. ‘Safeguard Zones’, which can be used to protect sources of drinking water, are being identified to help target advice and promote best practice in those areas most at risk. There are many ways to address pollution from the countryside. Farmers, stable owners and golf course owners can use well-known, tried and tested methods to manage their land and use fertilisers, manures and pesticides safely and efficiently. Sharing best practice and working together in rural communities to tackle this issue will bring improvements for the environment and is likely to be long lasting. There is a best farming practices handbook available from our website. To view, please visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/business/sectors/bestfarmingpractices.aspx. Farmers can gain financial benefits by entering Environmental Stewardship schemes where they are paid for working on their land in a way that benefits both the farmer and the environment. Sustainable farming is vital to maintain a high class environment, a vibrant rural economy and to increase food production to feed a growing population. Agriculture will aim to work in harmony with the environment as farmers identify cost-effective ways of managing the land at the same time as enhancing productivity. Seven catchments have been designated as Catchment Sensitive Farming (CSF) areas where advice and grants are available to fund changes to farmyards to reduce pollutants reaching the rivers, for example, by adding guttering to barns to divert rain water from muddy yards. You can find out more on Catchment Sensitive Farming on Natural England’s website - http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/ourwork/farming/csf/default.aspx. There are also local partnerships running farm advice projects, for example on the Loddon, Wey and Chilterns. You can find out more about the Loddon Farm Advice Project on the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust website. To view, please visit http://www.hiwwt.org.uk/pages/loddon-and-ever-farm-advice-1354.html

http://evidence.environment-agency.gov.uk/FCERM/Libraries/FCERM_Documents/SCHO0411BTWE-E-E.sflb.ashx

http://evidence.environment-agency.gov.uk/FCERM/Libraries/FCERM_Documents/SCHO0411BTWE-E-E.sflb.ashx

http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/business/sectors/bestfarmingpractices.aspx

http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/business/sectors/bestfarmingpractices.aspx

http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/ourwork/farming/csf/default.aspx

http://www.hiwwt.org.uk/pages/loddon-and-ever-farm-advice-1354.html


Summary of possible actions by issue The table below summarises the possible actions (and owners) for each of the significant issues within the Thames River Basin District. These actions have been identified through an assessment of the issues and the Environment Agency’s engagement with partners to date.

Physical modifications

• Remove or alter barriers, such as weirs and sluices which cause demonstrable physical and biological problems (all sectors that own a barrier)

• Restore rivers to re-create new habitat and re-connect to the floodplain (all sectors that are riparian owners)

• Promote the use of natural processes to manage rivers and reduce the amount of unnecessary works which can affect river channels, flows, water levels and floodplain habitats (all sectors that are riparian owners)

• Remove culverts (all landowner sectors that own a culvert)

• Ensure ‘green engineering’ options are integrated into new developments (various, including local government, industry, manufacturing and other business, transport, water industry)

Pollution from waste water

• Target improvements to sewerage systems and sewage treatment works (water industry, central government)

• Reduce levels of low level contaminants in products used in the home and workplace (central government, industry, manufacturing and other business)

Pollution from rural areas

• Manage land according to best practice (agriculture and land management, angling and conservation, forestry, local government, recreation, transport, water industry)

• Deliver the Catchment Sensitive Farming initiative and other farm advice partnerships (central government (Natural England))

• Raise public awareness of local impacts of septic tanks (agriculture, local government, rural business, water industry)

Pollution from towns, cities and transport

• Identify and raise public awareness about misconnections (water industry, local government)

• Ensure preventative maintenance of sewers like sewer inspections and jetting (water industry)

• Publicise proper disposal of fats and oils and ‘unflushables’ such as disposable nappies, wet wipes and other sanitary waste (water industry)

• Ensure Sustainable Drainage Schemes are promoted in new developments and retrofitted to existing drainage wherever possible (central and local government, industry, manufacturing and other business)

• Ensure sustainable management of road drainage (central and local government)


Changes to the natural flow and level of water

• Identify rivers affected by abstraction and take action to reduce the impact such as changing abstraction licences or modifying river channels. (water industry, central government)

• Revoke or amend underused licences (water industry, agriculture, industry)

• Promote the transfer of water from locations of surplus where it is cost effective to do so (water industry, central government).

• Promote using water wisely through targeted campaigns (water industry, central government)

Invasive non-native species

• Co-ordinate action to control and limit the spread of invasive non-native species (central and local government, agriculture and land management, angling and conservation, forestry, academia, navigation, recreation, general public)

• Develop a river basin wide invasive non-native species steering group and strategy (central and local government, agriculture and land management, angling and conservation, forestry, academia, navigation, recreation)

• Raise public awareness about invasive non-native species through targeted campaigns like the ‘check, clean and dry campaign’ and through apps for smart phones (central and local government, agriculture and land management, angling and conservation, forestry, academia, navigation, recreation, general public)

• Continue to support existing initiatives and best practice such demonstrated by London Invasive Species Initiative. (local government, agriculture and land management, angling and conservation, forestry, academia, navigation, general public)


8 The catchments in the Thames River Basin District The Thames River Basin District has been divided into 17 catchments. A catchment includes all of the different types of waters which are in that area including rivers, lakes, estuaries, coastal areas and groundwater. This section provides more information about each of the

catchments and the significant water management issues that are affecting them.

Figure 2 Map of the Thames River Basin District catchments

Note: the Tidal Thames is not one of the 17 defined catchments; it is a smaller sub-catchment (see below). However, it has been included on this map and described separately in this section due to the distinct significant issues impacting upon it.

These catchments were defined by grouping different types of water bodies together, which in many cases are linked by the way water flows between them. Some of these catchments are quite large and it may prove more effective that catchment work happens at a smaller ‘sub-catchment’ scale within them. Working together at a level that encourages more people to get involved will achieve more for communities and the water environment.

The next section describes some of the significant water management issues in each catchment and how these challenges are limiting the benefits society gets from the water environment. We share what is currently being done, what more could be done and what the priorities for action might be. This section does not provide a comprehensive record for each catchment, rather an ‘at a glance’ summary of the main issues in each catchment. If you want to know more, you can see catchment plans (where available) or more detailed summaries, and a summary of facts and statistics (including who the Environment Agency contact is for each catchment and sub-catchment) in the Thames River Basin District catchments: Facts and statistics document. To view, please visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx.




The graph below shows a summary of the significant issues affecting water bodies and are reasons why they are not in good condition, in each of the catchments in the Thames River Basin District (from our investigations programme to date).

Graph 3 Significant water management issues affecting water bodies in each of the catchments in the Thames River Basin District

Note: based on 2013 information on reasons for failure collected during investigations carried out by the Environment Agency; numbers in graph are the numbers of affected waters. More than one significant issue may be recorded for a water body.

Responding to the consultation at catchment level We would like to hear your views on the following questions on the catchment, or catchments, you are particularly interested in:

Consultation questions 4 How are the significant issues in a catchment affecting the water environment and society? Please specify which catchment(s) your response refers to and provide relevant information to help explain your answer. 5 How do you think the challenges affecting each catchment should be tackled and what would you choose to do first? Please specify which catchment(s) your response refers to. Please consider any resource implications.


The River Cherwell at Oxford

Cherwell Catchment The River Cherwell is one of the major tributaries of the Thames. The catchment extends southwards from the headwaters of the river at Charwelton in Northamptonshire to meet the River Thames in Oxford. The catchment is largely rural, although major towns support a diverse range of industry from engineering and power generation to computer software companies. The diverse water environment provides many benefits to people, businesses and the economy, supporting activities such as fishing, walking and boating.

A local partnership led by the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust is currently working on improving the rivers in the Ray sub-catchment. The group’s aim is, through partnerships, to create a more natural landscape with unpolluted waters, which is resilient to future pressures and is an attractive place for people to work, live and visit. To find out more, please visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx.

Our investigations show that the key challenges to the water environment in the Cherwell catchment are pollution from waste water and rural areas, physical modifications and changes to the natural level and flow of water.

There has been significant investment in improving sewage treatment works over recent years, but more needs to be done to reduce the impact of pollutants, such as phosphate from these works. This type of pollution makes certain plants and algae grow too much, which means there is less oxygen and light for other plants and animals to live and grow. Actions need to be targeted where pollution is affecting the water environment the most, though improvements are expensive and will require funding.

Pollution from rural areas in the Cherwell catchment comes from a number of sources, such as water running off the land, carrying with it sediment and dissolved fertilisers and pesticides. This type of pollution has an impact on rivers and groundwater which, once contaminated, take a long time to recover. This puts supplies of clean water to people and wildlife at risk. Catchment level projects and other initiatives have targeted and reduced these sources of pollution by promoting better agricultural practices. Despite the progress made, the evidence shows more needs to be done.

Structures in the rivers and changes to the river banks have had a negative impact on habitats for plants and animals to live and grow. Improvements to these structures and changes will help fish move more easily between different parts of the river and increase habitat for natural wildlife. Getting funding and permission from landowners to make these improvements are big challenges. The priority is to assess all the structures and identify where the greatest improvements to the environment can be made and those which will provide the most benefit to everyone.

There are reduced water levels in the River Cherwell, which means there is less water available for plants and animals. This is caused by the amount of water that is taken for drinking water supply and the flow of water from the Oxford Canal. Altering abstractions so that the impact on rivers is reduced is necessary to help improve the habitat and water environment. However, this requires collaborative work and finding alternative supplies for public water supply, all requiring funding from sources such as domestic water bills.

For more details on the Cherwell catchment, please visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx.






Colne Catchment The Colne catchment is a unique collection of rivers, ranging from internationally rare chalk rivers in the rural, upper catchment to the central, south and eastern areas, which are very populated and have been heavily influenced by gravel extraction and urban development. Pockets of the lower Colne Valley retain a rural character and the linkage provided by its rivers, floodplains and lakes create valuable wildlife corridors. The catchment also supports a range of water based activities and services for those that live and visit the area. The Grand Union Canal that runs throughout the catchment provides important opportunities for businesses, supports recreation, and is a reminder of the catchment’s rich industrial heritage.

There is a variety of industry located within the Colne catchment, much of which depends on a reliable source of water. However, 96% of water abstracted locally is for public consumption, with the remainder being used for activities such as agriculture, horticulture and quarrying.

Investigations have shown that amongst the main challenges to the water environment in the catchment are changes to natural level and flow of water, pollution from waste water and physical modifications.

Many rivers in the catchment are fed by groundwater and suffer from low flows during dry weather, made worse by abstraction of water for people and businesses. The demand for water is likely to increase beyond the amount of groundwater available locally. Eventually, water may have to be bought into the catchment from elsewhere. This will affect the condition of the rivers and the wildlife they support. A number of abstractions owned by Affinity Water are impacting on flows in the rivers Ver, Misbourne, Gade and Colne. The Environment Agency, Affinity Water and interested river users and organisations are working together to identify ways of reducing abstraction, including identifying other sources of water and river channel improvements. Due to the large number and volume of abstractions, the costs associated with reducing abstraction locally are significant.

Waste water has a detrimental effect on water quality and is a common problem throughout the catchment. Over 2,000 residential discharges and six large sewage treatment works discharge treated water into the Colne and its tributaries. Thames Water continues to explore ways to improve the quality of discharges and to address the problems caused when intermittent sewage is discharged (under license) during storm events. Local action is happening, for example in the town of Chesham on the River Chess and Vale Brook. Here a pollution prevention campaign involves water companies, local authorities, the Environment Agency, community groups and the residents of Chesham, working together to identify the sources of pollution, raise awareness and educate people and business about preventing incidents that are harmful to the water environment.

Man made structures such as weirs and mills are the main reason why most of the waters in this catchment are not able to support healthy habitats. There are approximately 250 structures that stop or make it difficult for fish to easily move between different parts of a river or that are reducing and damaging the natural habitat.

The cost of removing or changing a structure is very expensive, so getting funding and permission from landowners is challenging. For example, to remove or change a weir, sluice or culvert on the River Misbourne would cost an average of £51,000. The priority is to assess

all the structures and identify where the greatest improvements to the environment can be made, which will provide the most benefit to everyone. For more details on the Colne catchment please visit: http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx.

River Chess, near Chesham




St. John’s Lock, Lechlade

River Coln at Fairford

Cotswold Catchment

The Cotswold catchment lies to the east of Oxford and is made up of three sub-catchments, the Upper Thames, Windrush and Evenlode. To see further information for these sub-catchments, please visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx. Limestone, which provides a significant water resource, lies beneath most of the area. Rising from the limestone, the rivers flow predominantly south-easterly into the River Thames close to its headwaters. There are also several lakes within the catchment, including the man made Farmoor Reservoir created to supply water to Oxford.

The catchment is designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and is dominated by the Cotswolds Hills, which attract many visitors for walking and cycling. To the far south west the lakes of the Cotswold Water Park are popular for water sports and fishing. Land is mainly used for agriculture, particularly arable farming. The largest urban areas are Cirencester in the south west and Witney in the north, with numerous towns and villages throughout the catchment.

Evidence shows that the most significant challenges to the water environment in the Cotswold catchment are physical modifications and pollution from waste water and rural areas, especially phosphates.

Rivers have mainly been changed to help protect areas from flooding and for navigation. Weirs and other structures in the rivers prevent fish from moving easily, create a build up of sediment, and reduce the connection between different areas of habitat. This is made worse when there are lower water levels and flow in the rivers affecting plants and animals and causing loss of water species and habitat. Work is needed to change or remove physical modifications in these rivers across the catchment. This work needs to be done through partnership working, it is often expensive, but can also help address a wide range of other issues.

Phosphate is in the outflows from sewage treatment works. It is also found in fertilisers that farmers put on the land. Many of the sources of pollution from rural areas have been identified, options to tackle these problems are being considered and action will need to be taken. Reducing phosphate in the waste water from sewage treatment works is expensive. Reducing pollution from rural areas requires a combination of actions across the catchment, which individually can cost relatively little, but to be most effective, need to be implemented by the majority of landowners across the catchment.

Other challenges in the catchment include changes to natural level and flow of water and the effects of invasive non-native species. Many of the rivers in the catchment are fed by groundwater. People and businesses abstract groundwater for drinking and other uses. This reduces the amount of water flowing into the rivers. When too much water is taken it can mean there is not enough to support a healthy water environment. Also, lower flows mean pollutants are not diluted as much, which makes their effects on plants and animals worse. North American signal crayfish are a non-native invasive species present in some of the waters in the catchment. This means that native crayfish are not able to live where they once

did. Action is needed to make sure this issue doesn’t become more widespread, causing loss of habitat and limiting healthy status of the rivers.




Darent and Cray Catchment The Darent and Cray catchment is approximately 395 square kilometres and is a mixture of rural and urban areas. The River Darent rises in Westerham, Kent and runs through Sevenoaks District Council to Dartford Borough Council to the River Thames. The River Cray rises in Orpington in the London Borough of Bromley and runs through the London Borough of Bexley before joining the Darent close to the River Thames. A wide range of groups from anglers to walkers, conservationists and historians are interested in improving the rivers in this catchment.

The condition of all waters in the catchment is not good. Although some improvements have been made, there is still much to do. Key challenges in this catchment are changes to natural level and flow of water, physical modifications and pollution from waste water, rural and urban areas.

Taking water from the catchment is a significant issue, most especially in times of serious drought. However, the amount of water abstracted from the River Darent catchment has been significantly reduced through the voluntary group Darent River Preservation Society, the Environment Agency and Thames Water recently completing the last step of the Darent Action Plan. You can find out more about this on the Environment Agency website. To view, please visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/news/146344.aspx

Rivers have been changed by urban development and to protect areas from flooding. These changes, including putting structures into the waters, mean there is a less natural habitat available for plants and animals to live and grow. There are hundreds of structures along the rivers that range from small culverts to large weirs. These structures stop wildlife from moving easily between different parts of the rivers. Improving the changes made or removing the structures is costly and sometimes getting permission from landowners to make changes is a challenge. All of the structures and man made river banks need to be assessed to see where they are having the greatest impact on the environment.

The rivers Darent and Cray both rise from the chalk springs along the North Downs as part of the West Kent Darent and Cray Chalk. To the south of the Downs is the Greensand Ridge with the rocks of the Lower Greensand aquifer lying beneath. These two main groundwater bodies interact with the rivers and wetlands in the catchment, with water passing between the surfacewater and the groundwater and vice-versa.

The impact of pollution from rural areas and from water running off roads affects waters throughout the catchment. Industrial chemicals, nitrates, pesticides and heavy metals in varying amounts also affect the quality of groundwater and water that flows into the Thames Estuary. The Environment Agency is beginning to work together with businesses, farmers and other landowners to address this issue and put in place actions that will reduce pollution in the future. For example, we are working with Thames Water to identify and deal with misconnected sewers from houses. We are also working with North West Kent Countryside Partnership to visit farms and advise farmers about ways of working that will reduce and prevent pollution entering the rivers and groundwater. Together with Natural England we held a workshop for farmers in the Darent sub-catchment to promote these ways of working.

Addressing these issues is a priority in this catchment. Catchment improvement groups for the Cray and the Darent have been formed to bring together local authorities, wildlife conservation, voluntary and other interest groups. These groups are developing a shared understanding of the issues and a plan to make improvements to benefit people and wildlife across the catchments. You can read more about this on the North West Kent Countryside Partnership website. To view, please visit http://www.nwkcp.org/darent-and-cray-catchments.

Significant issues on the tidal reaches of the rivers within this catchment are discussed in the ‘Tidal Thames sub-catchment’ section on page 40.

http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/news/146344.aspx

http://www.nwkcp.org/darent-and-cray-catchments


River Lambourn at Hunt’s Green after restoration

Kennet and Pang Catchment The Kennet and Pang catchment is made up of the River Pang and the River Kennet with its main tributaries the Lambourn, Dun, Enbourne and Foudry Brook. The Kennet and Lambourn are chalk rivers, which is a nationally important habitat. The River Kennet is a Site of Special Scientific Interest from Marlborough to Woolhampton, as is the entire Lambourn, which is also a Special Area of Conservation under the EU Habitats Directive. These rivers have national and international importance due to the wildlife they support. They are also a valuable economic and recreational asset for the area.

The River Kennet has been affected by significant changes in the way the land has been used. Over the last 80 years there has been a considerable reduction in land under permanent pasture, while land cultivated for arable crops has trebled. Urban areas and transport links have expanded to accommodate a growing population.

Our investigations programme shows that pollution from rural areas and waste water, physical modifications and changes to natural level and flow of water are some of the main challenges in the catchment.

The Kennet and Avon Canal flows through the catchment. It is shallow and slow flowing, with very different characteristics from the River Kennet. These conditions, combined with pollution in fertilisers that run off agricultural land into the canal and from sewage treatment works, encourage the growth of algae, causing the warm, shallow canal water to become cloudy. The canal overflows into the Dun and the River Kennet via weirs and shares the same channel as the River Kennet at several locations below Kintbury. The quality of water and habitat is reduced as the canal waters cloud the clear waters of the chalk rivers. This affects fishing in the rivers. The algae and sediment can smother the river gravel, preventing fish eggs from hatching and damaging the insect and plant life. A project costing £945,000 to prevent canal water entering the River Dun has just started.

The shape of rivers and the route they take through the land has been substantially changed in places. The habitat has been damaged by dredging to improve land drainage. Weirs and sluices prevent fish from moving freely up and down the river. Some of these structures are old and are no longer needed for their original purpose. They could be removed but this is expensive. In the past fifteen years £4 million has been spent on thirty river restoration schemes on the River Kennet and Lambourn. These have improved the quality of the environment for wildlife and local communities, stimulating educational initiatives and getting people involved in caring for their rivers. However, much more still needs to be done.

Groundwater is abstracted at Axford and Ogbourne to provide drinking water. Groundwater enters the River Kennet through springs and if too much water is abstracted, the level and flow of water is reduced in the river. The impact of abstraction has been well studied and damage to the local habitat has been proven. Thames Water’s solution is to construct a new pipeline to take water from Farmoor reservoir to supply Swindon, instead of taking water from the groundwater below the River Kennet. This is now planned for completion. The River Pang also suffers from low flows but this is mainly due to natural variation in rainfall.


Weir at Old Basing

Loddon Catchment The Loddon catchment covers an area of 680 square kilometres and is in the counties of Surrey, Hampshire and Berkshire. In the upper reaches of the Loddon, and some of its tributaries, the rivers are wide and shallow, typical of chalk fed streams. However, broad lowland river valleys, through which the rivers Loddon, Whitewater, Hart, Blackwater and Bow Brook meander, dominate much of the catchment. The River Loddon rises from the chalk fed springs at West Ham Farm, Basingstoke, and flows north easterly over chalk and clay, joining the Thames just west of Wargrave. The Blackwater rises to the south of Aldershot and flows over sands and gravels, joining the Loddon near Swallowfield. The Loddon catchment is predominantly suburban, agricultural and semi-natural grasslands. Urban and suburban development accounts for 39% of the land area; the main urban centres are Basingstoke, the east of Reading, Bracknell, Wokingham and the Camberley-Farnborough-Aldershot conurbation. Water is vital to the economy, vital for health and used to generate power, run industries and grow food. In addition, rivers and river corridors provide essential habitat for the ecology both on land and in the water. They also provide benefits for people, business and the economy, supporting recreation activities such as angling and walking.

Our investigations show that physical modifications, pollution from urban and rural areas, and waste water are key challenges to the water environment in the Loddon catchment.

Waters in the catchment have been largely changed to help manage flood risk and to allow more urban development. This has damaged and reduced the natural habitat for plants and animals to live and grow. There are also a number of weirs and other structures throughout the catchment that are a significant problem. Removing or changing these structures will help fish move more easily between different parts of the rivers and increase growth of the natural wildlife. Getting funding and permission from landowners to remove or change these structures is challenging. The priority is to assess all the structures and identify where the greatest improvements to the environment can be made, which will provide the most benefit to everyone.

The impact of pollution from waste water and water running off urban and rural land is a significant challenge in the catchment. High levels of pollutants make waters unsuitable for some plants and animals to live and cause others to grow too much, which means there is less oxygen and light for others to grow. The Environment Agency needs to work together with businesses, farmers and other landowners to identify where pollution is affecting the water environment the most and work to reduce it. Improvements that water companies can make at their sewage treatment works are expensive but will significantly reduce the concentration of pollutants, especially phosphate, in the rivers. New developments need to include better urban drainage systems and we are working with local authorities to encourage this. Reducing pollution from rural areas requires a combination of actions across the catchment, which individually can cost relatively little, but to be most effective, need to be implemented by the majority of landowners across the catchment.


London Catchment The London Catchment is a densely populated area. As a result, the vast majority of its rivers are culverted and many flow underneath the city of London. Culverted rivers are those that have been built over and now flow underground in concrete channels. These ‘lost’ rivers are now entwined within the vast Victorian sewer network. Due to the size of London, work is carried out on a smaller sub-catchment level. There are six sub-catchments in London. These are the Brent, the Crane, the Lower Lee, the Wandle, Ravensbourne and Marsh Dykes, the Hogsmill and Beverley Brook and the Tidal Thames. For more details on the sub-catchments in the London catchment, please visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx.

London’s rivers face many challenges, including physical modification, urban pollution from transport, misconnected drainage and combined sewer overflows as well as waste water pollution from sewage treatment works. These all have a devastating impact on plants and wildlife.

Many of London’s rivers have been changed because of development and flood protection. This means that very few rivers have remained in their natural state. These changes reduce and damage the habitats for local wildlife and structures in rivers stop fish moving easily from different parts of a river. However, removing or changing any structures is difficult and expensive, especially in this urban catchment.

Water running off roads means that many different pollutants can enter the rivers, including sediments and hydrocarbons such as motor oil. This reduces the quality of the water and makes it difficult for wildlife to thrive. Domestic plumbing mistakes mean that waste water from appliances in houses such as washing machines, and even toilets enters rivers every day. Changing these mistakes is very time consuming and expensive. There is work happening to prioritise the repair of these domestic plumbing mistakes where they are having the most serious impact on the rivers and wildlife.

London’s overburdened Victorian sewer network is causing significant amounts of pollution to enter rivers. When there is heavy rainfall, the sewers become overwhelmed with water which ends up in the combined sewer overflows. These overflows allow huge volumes of ‘storm water’ and untreated waste water to flow into rivers across the catchment. It can take as little as 2mm of rain for this to happen. The overflows are working as they were designed to many years ago to prevent homes and businesses being flooded with waste water during storms. However, untreated waste water in rivers is not acceptable today. Plants and wildlife are affected by raw sewage entering rivers, as it causes oxygen levels to reduce significantly and kill fish. It is also unpleasant for us to see and smell. The Tideway Tunnel project is seeking planning consent and will help alleviate these problems in the River Thames and near the Abbey Mills Pumping station in East London. But, there are other rivers in the catchment that suffer the consequences of this type of pollution too.

There has been significant investment in improving sewage treatment works over recent years, but more needs to be done to reduce the impact from phosphate pollution in London’s rivers. This type of pollution causes plants and algae to grow excessively, resulting in less oxygen and light for other plants and animals. Improving sewage treatment works is expensive but it does significantly reduce the concentration of pollutants in rivers.

The water quality of the Thames Estuary is affected by pollution directly but also indirectly from the polluted rivers which flow into it. You can read more about the significant issues on the tidal reaches of the rivers within this catchment in the ‘Tidal Thames sub-catchment’ section on page 40.




Canoe and fish pass at Eldridges lock

Medway Catchment The Medway is one of the largest catchments in southern England. The River Medway flows from its source in the High Weald through rural and large urban areas such as Tonbridge and the Medway Towns. At Maidstone, the river becomes a tidal estuary, before finally joining the Thames Estuary at Rochester, 70 miles from its source. Other rivers in the catchment include the Eden and Bourne in the west and the Beult, Teise and Len in the east. Rivers in the catchment are used for navigation, recreation, agriculture, drinking water and flood defence. Nearly three quarters of the Medway catchment is protected by landscape and wildlife

designations, with the River Beult falling entirely within a Site of Special Scientific Interest.

Our evidence shows that amongst the main challenges to the water environment in the Medway catchment are physical modifications and pollution from waste water and rural areas.

The catchment has over 300 man made structures on its rivers and estuaries, which reduce and damage the natural habitat for local wildlife. Structures include weirs, mill ponds, culverts and flood defences such as sheet piling and sea walls, many of which are used for recreation or to reduce the risk of flooding. The

foreshore along the Medway Estuary is under pressure and at risk of being narrowed further from more development. Ongoing projects are addressing structures with the biggest impact, for

instance, several fish and canoe passes have been installed between Maidstone and Tonbridge to improve the river for recreation and wildlife. However, the cost to remove or modify structures is a challenge. River users, landowners, local authorities, Non Governmental Organisations and others are coming together to decide which projects will benefit the water environment and society most, given the resources available.

The impact of pollution from waste water is another significant issue in the catchment. Southern Water has an extensive programme of improvements to sewage treatment works planned or underway. Although these are expensive, they will significantly reduce the concentration of pollutants in the rivers, especially phosphate. However in rural areas, waste water pollution also comes from properties not connected to the mains sewerage network. The Environment Agency has been working in partnership with others to advise businesses and householders how they can reduce the risks of polluting nearby rivers and groundwater through better maintenance.

Pollution from rural areas also comes from farming, horticulture and horse activities. The Beult and Eden are priority areas for Natural England’s Catchment Sensitive Farming initiative. They are providing targeted advice and grants to landowners and farmers to help tackle these problems. You can find out more on Natural England’s website. To view, please visit http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/ourwork/farming/csf/cgs/catchments.aspx (catchments 44 and 59). However, more needs to be done. Reducing pollution from rural areas requires a combination of actions across the catchment, which individually can cost relatively little, but to be most effective, need to be implemented by the majority of landowners across the catchment. Pollution in rivers also affects coasts and estuaries. Pollution from the Medway catchment could also be affecting bathing waters and commercial shellfish stocks in neighbouring catchments.

Communities play a vital role in shaping the future of the Medway and six Medway Catchment Improvement Groups are developing future plans. The six Medway sub-catchments are the Eden, Beult, Teise, Upper Medway, Middle Medway and Medway navigation. For more details on these sub-catchments, please visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx.

http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/ourwork/farming/csf/cgs/catchments.aspx




The Stepping Stones near Box Hill in Surrey

Mole Catchment The River Mole originates south of Crawley, West Sussex and flows through the eastern Surrey districts of Tandridge, Mole Valley, Reigate and Banstead and Elmbridge for approximately 50 miles. The river flows through some large urban areas such as Crawley, Leatherhead, Esher and beneath Gatwick, the UK’s second largest airport. The catchment also includes some of the prettiest countryside in southern England.

Amongst the main challenges to the water environment of the River Mole and its tributaries are physical modifications, pollution from waste water, rural and urban areas. These issues have resulted in pollution across the catchment, which has reduced the variety and numbers of local plants and animals. Our latest investigations have identified that phosphate is the biggest water quality issue throughout the catchment, which is primarily coming from sewage treatment works. They have also confirmed that man made obstructions in the river are the biggest problem affecting habitats. Despite these challenges, water quality has improved in recent years due to improvements to sewage treatment works and better practices by industry.

There are 93 man made structures, mostly weirs, within the River Mole and tributaries. These structures prevent wildlife

from moving freely between different parts of the river. They also reduce the amount and quality of habitat available for wildlife to live and grow. It is expensive to alter these structures, for example, installing fish passes on the two weirs before the Mole joins the Thames, near Esher, would cost approximately £350,000. Therefore, it is a priority to assess all structures and identify where the greatest improvements to the environment can be made, considering costs, and which will provide the most benefit to everyone.

There has been significant investment to improve sewage treatment works over recent years, but more needs to be done to reduce the impact of pollutants, especially phosphates. This type of pollution causes plants and algae to grow excessively, resulting in less oxygen and light for other plants and animals.

Fertiliser, pesticides and soil, in rainwater running off agricultural land, affects rivers throughout the catchment. The River Mole mainly flows over clay soils and so suffers from this problem after rainfall, because the rainwater doesn’t soak into the ground easily. The Environment Agency would like to work with farmers and landowners to better understand how these chemicals and soils are getting in to the river and encourage better farming practices that will reduce pollution entering rivers and groundwater.

Commuter belt housing developments and Gatwick Airport are major pressures on the local environment. More houses, people and development will mean that groundwater and rivers are at risk from more pollution, for example from water running off roads and hard surfaces, as well as other emerging issues such as more water being abstracted for people and businesses to use. We are working closely with local authorities throughout the planning process to make sure new developments do not damage rivers and groundwater, and to identify opportunities to improve habitats and water quality.

Within the Mole catchment we are working with others at a smaller scale to suits the needs of the local community and water environment. For more details on the Mole catchment, please visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx.



Rare Egret spotted at Graveney Marshes

North Kent Catchment

The North Kent catchment runs along the North Kent coast between Gillingham and Herne Bay. It forms a triangle contained within the M20 and A28. Beneath the catchment the ground is mostly North Downs chalk. As a result, groundwater is an important source of

water in this area much of the water in this area is located underground. This groundwater provides drinking water for people and water for rivers.

Challenges to the water environment in this catchment include physical modifications, pollution from waste water, rural and urban areas. In the 1960s, North Kent’s natural marshes were drained for farming. Waters have also been affected by residential development across the catchment. All of these issues have reduced and damaged the natural habitat for plants and animals. However, through our investigations, more is known about these issues and we could tackle them. This will help improve the health of the

water environment to benefit people, plants and animals.

Pollution from rural and urban areas comes from a number of sources, such as water running off the land that contains fertilisers and pesticides, solvents, phosphates and hydrocarbons produced by agriculture and industry. This type of pollution affects rivers and groundwater which, once contaminated, take a long time to recover. This puts supplies of clean water for people and wildlife at risk. We need to work together with businesses, farmers, other landowners, communities and organisations to use better practices to reduce pollution.

The impact of pollution from sewage treatment works is also a significant issue in the catchment. Southern Water, on the Swale, Frognal Drain, Faversham Creek and Milton Creek, are planning or carrying out improvements to sewage treatment works. These are expensive but will significantly reduce the concentration of pollutants in rivers. Estuaries and coastal waters are suffering from pollution entering rivers upstream, as well as directly into them. Pollution contaminates commercial shellfish stocks, which is a particular issue across the Swale East and Swale Central shellfish beds. It also impacts on other shellfish beds as far away as Whitstable. Contamination of shellfish waters and bathing waters has a negative effect on businesses, leisure and tourism, as well as wildlife.

There are habitats that depend on water where many types of birds live. The grazing marshes and tidal mud flats are designated as Special Protected Areas and Sites of Special Scientific Interest. These key areas are at risk of damage from artificially modified drainage and water abstraction points, which have been set up predominately for use by agricultural and livestock farming. If too much water is abstracted it can mean there is not enough water to support a healthy water environment. North Kent has a very low amount of rain compared to the rest of England, so this situation is likely to get worse if action is not taken. Through a series of stakeholder meetings and workshops we are working with local businesses to look at ways to reduce their demand for water.

Changes to rivers, including man made river banks and structures in the river are a significant problem for plants and animals in the catchment. Work is ongoing to see if a small number of flood structures can be removed or changed. These improvements will help fish move more easily between different parts of the river and increase growth of the natural wildlife. Estuaries and coastal areas have been changed to help protect people from flooding and for navigation. This has narrowed beaches and reduced the habitat for plants and animals to live and grow. Getting funding and permission from landowners to remove or change these structures is a big challenge that needs to be addressed.


A concrete river bed and banks at Harrow Lodge Park on the River Ravensbourne

Roding, Beam and Ingrebourne Catchment The Roding, Beam and Ingrebourne catchment has a total of 16 clay rivers that run through Essex and east London. While the upper stretches of these rivers are usually natural, the stretches through London have been modified.

The River Roding rises near Stansted Airport, a rural area dominated by intensive agriculture where farmers rely on rivers to water their crops at key times of the year. It is one of the few London rivers that doesn’t have a full tidal sluice where it meets the River Thames and is therefore semi-tidal. The rivers Ingrebourne and Beam rise just outside the M25. The River Ingrebourne and its streams typically feature meanders and natural gravel features, whereas large parts of the rivers Rom and Ravensbourne have concrete beds and banks, many weirs or are completely in culvert, particularly in large urban areas like Romford.

The catchment’s rivers generally respond quickly to rainfall, meaning that they’re prone to flooding after large storms or prolonged periods of heavy rainfall. This is made worse by water running off roads and hard surfaces in urban areas in the lower stretches. Following long dry spells, the rivers’ sources can dry up and flows reduce. Several areas of wetland offer both important habitats for wildlife and valuable green spaces for local people to enjoy. These wetlands include Roding Valley Meadows and the Ingrebourne Marshes Sites of

Special Scientific Interest.

Our investigations programme found that physical modifications, pollution from waste water and urban areas are the the main challenges to the water environment in this catchment.

A number of the rivers have been straightened, widened, and in many urban areas, concreted due to development. These changes reduce the habitat available for wildlife. Tidal sluices, weirs and other structures prevent fish from moving easily between different parts of the river. While it is possible to remove or change some structures, cost and getting funding and permission from

landowners to make improvements are major challenges. For example, restoring one kilometre of the River Ravensbourne at Harrow Lodge Park by removing concrete and culvert as well as landscaping has been estimated to cost £1 million. It is, therefore, important to assess all structures and identify where the greatest improvements to the environment can be made which will provide the most benefit to everyone.

The impact of pollution from sewage treatment works and from runoff from roads and urban areas is a major issue in the catchment. The Environment Agency estimates that over 80% of the phosphate in the Ingrebourne comes from Brentwood sewage treatment works. While improvements are very expensive they will reduce pollutants, especially phosphates.

Pollution also comes from a number of other sources. Many domestic treatment systems located on the upper Roding and Beam discharge sewage into the river and are often poorly maintained. There are also unknown illegal discharges from septic tanks in isolated areas. Storm sewage overflows also discharge sewage into rivers, for instance into the Roding at Woodford. Domestic plumbing mistakes mean that dirty waste water from household appliances such as washing machines and even toilets enters streams and rivers every day.

Significant issues on the tidal reaches of the rivers within this catchment are discussed in the ‘Tidal Thames sub-catchment’ section on page 40.

We are working closely with local groups to explore solutions to these problems and create a catchment plan. To view, please visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx.




The Mardyke, Davy Down

South West Essex Catchment The South Essex Rivers catchment is relatively flat and low lying, covering an area of 226 square kilometres. It includes the Mardyke Valley to the west and a number of small tributaries of the Thames Estuary to the east.

The area is mostly rural, although there are significant urban areas along the Thames Estuary at Purfleet, Grays, Tilbury, Stanford-le-Hope and Pitsea. The land within the catchment is mainly used for agriculture, although the area also supports substantial industrial activity. The nationally important London Gateway Port development is also situated within the catchment.

There are some small water dependent Sites of Special Scientific Interest in the Mardyke Valley at Grays Chalk Pit and West Thurrock Lagoon and Marshes. The coastal strip to the east of the catchment also hosts a number of internationally important habitat sites. These include the Thames Estuary & Marshes Special Protection Area and a number of grazing marsh Sites of Special Scientific Interest. The catchment also lies within the Greater Thames Marshes Nature Improvement Area. You can find out more about Nature Improvement Areas on Natural England’s website. To view, please visit http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/ourwork/conservation/biodiversity/funding/nia/default.aspx.

The small rivers within the catchment respond quickly to rainfall but normally have low levels of water. The combination of gentle gradients and less water result in slower water flow. The flow from the Mardyke to the River Thames is controlled by a sluice located where the two rivers meet and the Mardyke becomes tide locked for several hours each tidal cycle.

Pollution from waste water, urban and rural areas, and physical modifications are key challenges within this catchment.

Farming and water running off land in urban areas, as well as discharges from sewage treatment works cause high levels of phosphate in waters. The Environment Agency is working closely with water companies and businesses to identify

where investment can be made to improve sewage collection and treatment facilities.

The rivers have historically been managed to improve land drainage and flood protection. This has changed the physical nature and natural flow of the river, leading to damaged and reduced habitats. Even with these challenges, numbers of fish and eel in the catchment are good, but more could be done to improve the habitat for the smaller animals and plant life in the river. There are a number of abstraction points where water is taken from the Mardyke, which affects the amount of water available for plants and animals to live and grow.

A number of partnership projects are underway to improve the quality of rivers within the catchment. Essex Wildlife Trust is carrying out catchment walkovers in partnership with us, to identify improvements to the rivers to address some of the physical modifications.

The Trust has also appointed a South Essex Rivers Project Officer to manage projects to improve the water environment and work with other partners to develop a catchment action plan. A strategic Mardyke Catchment Group has been set up to identify and tackle the challenges within the catchment. In the Environment Agency, this catchment is managed by the Anglian Region. To find out more, please contact Michael Neale on 01473 706 357, or email [email protected].

http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/ourwork/conservation/biodiversity/funding/nia/default.aspx



Thame Catchment This area includes the catchments of the rivers Thame and Wye. The Thame is the bigger catchment and is a slow moving river with a shallow gradient and numerous tributaries. The much shorter River Wye rises as chalk springs north west of High Wycombe and is an important chalk stream. Both rivers flow into the River Thames. The Wye flows through High Wycombe and is urban for the majority of its length. The large town of Aylesbury is situated towards the upper end of the River Thame and there are numerous small towns and villages across the catchment.

The Grand Union Canal in the upper Thame catchment provides opportunities for walking and boating. The River Thame has healthy numbers of fish and footpaths run close to long stretches, allowing people access to the river and providing opportunities to appreciate the water environment. By reducing pollution in the river, it can be improved for both people and wildlife.

Our evidence shows that key challenges for the water environment are phosphate pollution from waste water and rural areas, physical modifications and changes to natural level and flow of water.

Pollution is caused by discharges from sewage treatment works and from water and sediment running off agricultural land where fertilisers have been applied. This type of pollution makes the water unsuitable for some plants; they can disappear completely or a few species grow at the expense of many others. This affects both plants and animals by reducing their habitat and food sources. Other pollutants such as nitrogen and pesticides also affect groundwater, putting the supply of water to rivers, wetlands and the public at risk.

Sewage treatment works and places where pollution from rural areas is prevalent have been identified. Thames Water will prioritise and carry out improvements to sewage treatment works. Improvements are expensive but they significantly reduce the amount of pollutants in rivers. There are many ways to reduce pollution from agriculture, including sowing winter crops that capture excess nitrate and improve the condition of the soil, using grass field corners to slow water running off the land and into rivers and trap pollutants, and farmers managing the use of fertiliser better. Some of these individually cost relatively little, but to be effective, they must be implemented by most landowners across the entire catchment.

Man made changes to rivers such as deepening, widening and reinforcing the river banks with concrete have major impacts on the water environment. Bigger channels able to carry flood water mean the water usually flows more slowly. This changes the river habitat for plants and animals. River plants do not thrive where the river bed or banks are made from hard, man made structures because they cannot put roots into these surfaces. Where there are no plants there are fewer animals too. Fish cannot move easily around some structures in rivers to get to the areas upstream to lay eggs. While it is often possible to restore rivers in some places to their more natural state or remove and change structures, funding and permission from landowners to make improvements are major challenges. It is therefore important to identify where the greatest improvements to the environment can be made which will provide the most benefit to everyone.

Water for people and business is abstracted from rivers and groundwater. This needs to be carefully managed because when water levels are naturally low, the supply of water to people is put at risk and it can mean there is not enough water flowing in the rivers for plants and animals to live and grow.


Tidal Thames sub-catchment The Tidal Thames begins at Teddington Lock in Richmond. Flowing east, the estuary winds through the centre of London and into the outer estuary, along the Kent and Essex coastlines. The eastern sea boundary is between Haven Point near Shoeburyness, Essex on the North bank, and Warden Point on the Isle of Sheppey, Kent on the South bank. This sub-catchment also includes the tidal reaches of the rivers Wandle, Brent, Crane, Lee, Ravensbourne, Roding and Darent and around Canvey Island. For hundreds of years, the tidal Thames has been integral to the development of London and the surrounding areas through land reclamation, national security, navigation, waste disposal, fishing, and other industrial uses. This legacy results in many of the pressures that the estuary faces today. The tidal Thames continues to have a huge economic and symbolic importance to London and the UK.

Only the river banks at Syon Park, near Isleworth are considered natural, accounting for less than 1% of the entire river bank length. Much of the Thames Estuary has been physically changed due to urban development, navigation and for flood protection. These changes have a significant impact on shoreline habitat, reducing habitat available for plants and animals to live and grow. Improvements to structures or urbanised river banks vary greatly in cost and can reach into hundreds of thousands of pounds. Many people live and work in London and along the Thames Estuary, habitat improvements can provide wider benefits to them.

Working closely with developers and local authorities, it has been possible to maximise opportunities to improve habitat and flood protection, while also enhancing public access and amenity. By continuing to work with others, and through flood risk management plans such as TE2100, opportunities for habitat creation such as intertidal terraces on the Greenwich Peninsula, and the salt marsh creation at the mouth of Barking Creek are possible.

Invasive species such as Chinese Mitten Crabs and Himalayan Balsam have become established on the tidal Thames, having an ecological and economic effect. It is important to reduce the impact of these species, as well as stopping them from spreading.

Pollution from sewage treatment works and combined sewage overflows, impacts wildlife in the estuary. London’s Victorian sewer network causes significant pollution from untreated sewage flowing into the estuary, as it has insufficient capacity during times of heavy rainfall. This can happen following as little as 2mm of rainfall. The main purpose of the combined sewage overflows is to stop homes and businesses being flooded by sewage. When untreated sewage enters the estuary it causes dissolved oxygen to drop to levels that damage plants and wildlife. The Thames Tideway Tunnel aims to resolve this significant problem by capturing and treating most of the sewage currently discharged from the combined sewage overflows.

Diffuse pollution is likely to impact the tidal Thames both directly and indirectly through the large number of rivers that feed into the estuary. Water running off roads means that a wide range of different pollutants go into rivers and the estuary, including excessive sediments and hydrocarbons, such as motor oil. This badly affects water quality and can make it difficult for wildlife to thrive in these areas.

The historic legacy of industry and navigation on the tidal Thames may also have a damaging impact on water quality. Heavy metals, herbicides and preservatives trapped in sediment can significantly impact wildlife if disturbed. There is also the potential to contaminate shellfish stocks and bathing waters located in the outer estuary, resulting in social, economic and environmental impacts. Groups of interested organisations such as the Thames Estuary Dredging Liaison Group are important in coordinating work in the estuary.

‘Your Tidal Thames’, a pilot project coordinated by the Thames Estuary Partnership and Thames21, are working with local and tidal Thames tributary Catchment Groups to explore solutions to these problems and create an adaptive, proactive catchment plan. To view, please visit: http://www.thamesweb.com/projects-introduction/your-tidal-thames.html.

http://www.thamesweb.com/projects-introduction/your-tidal-thames.html


Molesey Weir, River Thames

Lower Thames Catchment The non-tidal Lower River Thames provides benefits to many people and businesses as well as the economy. It provides drinking water for a large population, including much of Greater London, it is managed to protect local people and property from flooding, and is maintained for boating.

Pressure from development is high in this catchment, with many developments creating long stretches of man made banks. The River Thames is world famous and attracts people from far and wide who enjoy it for walking, fishing, cruising, canoeing, and rowing or to simply sit beside. The Thames Path National Trail runs its entire length and also forms part of a national cycleway. The catchment includes the Lower River Thames and a number of its tributaries, including the Cut, Maidenhead, Boveney and Chalvey Ditches, the Salthill Stream and Datchet Common Brook. Centres of urban development include the towns of Bracknell, Maidenhead, Windsor, Slough, Staines and Kingston.

Investigations show that amongst the main challenges for the water environment are physical modifications and pollution from waste water.

Changes to water bodies, including over 61 major weir structures and man made river bank protection has reduced and damaged the natural habitat and stops fish moving freely between different parts of some rivers. Changes to a structure or restoring river

banks are expensive, so it is important to prioritise work that will bring the most improvement for everyone.

A lot of water is abstracted from the catchment for people and businesses. This means that water in the River Thames is carefully managed through the Lower Thames Operating Agreement with Thames Water. There is a risk of fish getting trapped and killed at sites where water is removed, or injured at hydropower sites that generate electricity. Putting screens on water intakes on the River Thames could save many fish from being lost from the river, improving fish populations and the quality of fishing for people. Work with water companies and hydropower management companies to address these issues needs to continue.

Natural habitats such as natural river banks and channels are relatively limited along the River Thames because of development pressures and the way in which the river is managed. Protecting and restoring important habitats improves the amount and diversity of wildlife, improving the water environment to benefit everyone.

Sewage treatment works discharges and sewage pollution affects the quality of water in the River Thames and there are water quality issues throughout the catchment. People and businesses need to be aware of the need to prevent pollutants entering the river, for example from misconnected drains. Awareness raising campaigns working with local community groups, local authorities and water companies are important tools in doing this. Water companies also need to continue to improve the treatment of discharges and reduce the problems associated with raw sewage discharges during storms.

To see more information for the Lower Thames catchment, please visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx.



Ponded River Mimram

Upper Lee Catchment Rivers within the Upper Lee catchment have a combined length of more than 320km. As a result, not one of the catchment’s 700,000 residents is further than 5km from a river.

Across the catchment, the character of the rivers varies considerably. In urban areas like Luton and Stevenage, rivers typically run in man made channels and culverts and can only be seen as they flow through parks and green spaces. However, in more rural areas picturesque rivers run through marked valleys and wind their way through small settlements such as Whitwell. As a result, the way the rivers are perceived by local people, and the value they place in them, varies widely across the catchment.

Amongst the main challenges in this catchment include changes to natural level and flow of water, pollution from waste water, towns, cities, transport and rural areas, and physical modifications.

Chalk rivers depend on an adequate supply of groundwater. Groundwater and rivers supply water for local people. In an area where daily water use is among the highest in the country (in 2011, the average person in Hertfordshire used 163 litres a day against the UK average of 150 litres), 90% of water abstracted is used for public water supply. More than 100 million litres of water is used every day in the catchment.

Vulnerable chalk rivers, like the Beane and Mimram are suffering from low flows. They can become ‘ponded’ or even completely dry, particularly in their upper sections. This can happen for significant periods of time and for some

rivers is an almost permanent state. In the Upper Lee catchment, the demand for water exceeds the natural supply available, which makes it a particularly ‘water stressed’ catchment.

To keep rivers flowing, we estimate that abstraction needs to be reduced by 36 million litres a day. One option is to secure additional water from a neighbouring area, but this can cost up to £4 million per million litres per day. Working with water companies, we are looking at ways to make sure that supply continues to be safeguarded where it is needed. However, if every person in the catchment used just 15 litres less of water every day, this would help restore river flows and could save millions of pounds.

In urban areas, pollution from waste water and water running off the roads poses another significant challenge. More than one in ten households in the catchment has misconnected appliances to the surface water drains rather than the foul water sewer. As a result, dirty waste water from appliances such as washing machines and toilets enters streams and rivers every day. The current and historic use of land has also led to pollution from industry and agriculture and created many man made changes to rivers like concrete channels and weirs. We are working to identify the sources and impacts of these problems.

Local groups are working to campaign for improvements in river flows and the sustainable use of water. We have been working closely with these groups, local people and organisations in catchment partnerships. Our aim is to create a shared understanding of the problems and to tackle them together. To find out more, please visit www.beaneandmimrampartnership.org.uk/ and www.stortriverpartnership.org.uk/.

http://www.beaneandmimrampartnership.org.uk/

http://www.stortriverpartnership.org.uk/


Vale of White Horse Catchment This area includes a number of rivers that flow into the River Thames. The bigger rivers are the rivers Ock, Cole and Ray. Rising from the chalk of the North Wessex Downs in the south, the rivers drain quickly northward into extensive, lower lying parts of the Thames Valley. Swindon is the largest town in the catchment. There are a number of smaller towns and villages throughout the catchment.

The area is predominantly rural with a mixture of intensive arable agriculture and permanent pasture. Improved drainage across low-lying areas has allowed agriculture to expand. Streams fed by groundwater in the chalk to the south of the catchment retain, in parts, some of their natural characteristics. These include clear water, and gravel beds that are suitable for fish to lay their eggs in and uncommon plant species to colonise. Rivers flow through towns such as Swindon and Wantage and people are able to enjoy and benefit from the water environment. Improvements to water quality and river habitat would make these rivers better for both people and wildlife.

Our evidence tells us that phosphate pollution from waste water and rural areas, and changes to natural level and flow of water are key challenges in the catchment.

Pollution is caused by discharges from sewage treatment works and from water and sediment running off agricultural land where fertilisers have been applied. This type of pollution makes the water unsuitable for some plants; they can disappear completely or a few species grow at the expense of many others. This affects both plants and animals by reducing their habitat and food sources. Other pollutants such as nitrogen and pesticides also affect groundwater, putting the public water supply and supply of water to rivers and wetlands at risk.

Sewage treatment works and places where pollution from rural areas is prevalent have been identified. Thames Water and the Environment Agency will work together to prioritise and carry out improvements to sewage treatment works. Improvements are expensive but they significantly reduce the amount of pollutants in the rivers. There are many ways to reduce pollution from agriculture, including sowing winter crops that capture excess nitrate and improve soil condition, using grass field corners to slow water running off the land and into rivers and trap pollutants, and farmers managing how they use fertiliser better. Some of these individually cost relatively little, but to be effective, they must be implemented by most landowners across the entire catchment.

Many of the rivers in the catchment are fed by groundwater. The amount of water available is reduced because of the amount of water abstracted for people and businesses to use; it is replenished when there is a lot of rain. When groundwater levels are low during prolonged dry spells, the supply of water to people is put at risk and there may not be enough water flowing in the rivers for plants and animals to live and grow. When there is less water in the rivers, the effects of pollution are often increased.


Farnham gauging weir

Wey Catchment The upper reaches of the Wey catchment are predominantly rural, with the towns of Alton, Farnham, Haslemere and Godalming being the main urban areas. The lower reaches of the catchment are primarily urban and include the major towns of Guildford, Weybridge and Woking. The Wey navigation cuts into and out of the natural river from Godalming to Weybridge, which has an impact on the plants and animals as well as water available in the river.

The Wey Valley contains valuable floodplain grazing marsh, a priority UK Biodiversity Action Plan habitat that provides feeding opportunities for wintering wading birds. The Wey catchment also contains large areas of lowland heathland, which is important internationally. Protected species include otters that are slowly returning to the Wey catchment, while numbers of water voles are decreasing, mainly because of mink in the area. Native brown trout can be found in the catchment, mostly in the headwaters. People, including anglers, walkers and boaters, benefit from the water environment in this catchment. Improvements made will increase the benefits to people and wildlife.

Investigations show that some of the main challenges for the water environment in this catchment are physical modification and pollution from waste water, urban and rural areas.

Waters in the catchment have been changed for navigation and to reduce flood risk. Locks, weirs, dams and other structures are a significant problem for plants and animals in the catchment. There are over 850 structures that stop fish being able to move easily between different parts of the rivers. Work is underway to assess which structures could be changed or removed to benefit local wildlife. Changes to a structure are expensive and so to address this issue across the entire catchment, a lot of money is needed. Funding and

landowner permission to carry out improvements are big challenges. Sites should be assessed to identify where the greatest improvements to the environment can be made, which will provide the most benefit to everyone.

The impact of pollution from rural areas used for agriculture, urban areas and from treated waste water discharges are significant issues in the catchment. Phosphate levels are high in many rivers, which lead to some plant species dominating a river and stopping other plants and animals from growing.

There are a number of non-native invasive plant species in the catchment such as floating pennywort and Himalayan balsam, which are widespread in some areas. These plants can spread quickly and dominate a river channel or river bank, preventing native plants growing. Action is needed now to make sure this issue doesn’t become even more widespread. American Signal crayfish are spread throughout the catchment and are the main reason for the drastic decline in the native, local crayfish. There is currently no effective means of controlling signal crayfish.

To see more details for the Wey catchment, please visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx.




9 Further information on the significant issues This consultation provides an overview of what we, at the Environment Agency, believe to be the significant issues in the Thames River Basin District. We have used many different sources of information and evidence to create this document. Where possible we have made this available to you and provided links in the appropriate sections.

• Thames River Basin District facts and statistics – Further information on the statistics for the Thames River Basin District. This contains information such as water body classification results and reasons for being classified at lower than good ecological condition. It contains details on the protected areas that fall under special legal protection. To access the document, visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx.

• Thames River Basin District Strategic Environmental Assessment –To ensure the river basin management plans properly consider all aspects of the environment (for example how the plan affects the historic environment or landscape), the Environment Agency is carrying out a Strategic Environmental Assessment of each plan. There is a consultation on how we propose to approach this task in the Thames River Basin District asking if you agree with the focus of the assessment and if you have any additional information we should be taking in to account. This consultation is published alongside the Thames River Basin District Challenges and Choices consultation and closes on 22 December 2013. To view this consultation, please visit https://consult.environment-agency.gov.uk/portal/ho/wfd/water/choices.

• England’s waters: Challenges and Choices consultation – There is a consultation on the nationally significant water management issues (covering the whole of England), many of which we experience in the Thames River Basin District. The consultation for this National document also starts on 22 June. It is open for three months, closing on 22 September 2013. We would welcome your views on the questions and issues raised in that document too. To view this consultation, please visit https://consult.environment-agency.gov.uk/portal/ho/wfd/water/choices.

• Significant Water Management Planning evidence summaries – Containing more technical detail on the significant issues in England and Wales. These summaries do not necessarily match the headings used to describe the issues in this document; rather they look at the pressures that create these issues, such as ‘Abstraction and flow’ or ‘Chemicals and metals’. To access these packs, please visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/library/data/145758.aspx

• Risk assessments – As well as considering the current state of the water environment, it is important to look at the future risks (potential impacts). The Environment Agency has produced risk assessments for each pressure affecting the water environment. To access these packs, visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/33268.aspx. You may wish to refer to them to give some more strategic context when you let us have your thoughts on this document.

• Water Framework Directive: DataShare – This is a web service from which anyone can download the datasets that the Environment Agency uses to inform much of the analysis and work we do. Relevant datasets include detailed classification data and maps of the bodies of water in England and Wales. Note: much of the content on this site is technical and requires special software to view files. To access the DataShare, visit http://www.geostore.com/environment-agency







http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/library/data/145758.aspx

http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/library/data/145758.aspx


http://www.geostore.com/environment-agency


• Local Nature Partnerships: http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/natural/whitepaper/local-nature-partnerships/

• Nature Improvement Areas: http://www.naturalengland.org.uk/ourwork/conservation/biodiversity/funding/nia/default.aspx

• Local Enterprise Partnerships: https://www.gov.uk/government/policies/supporting-economic-growth-through-local-enterprise-partnerships-and-enterprise-zones

• Physical modification projects referenced in Physical modifications summary in Section 7 ‘The significant water issues’

• Lee Valley Regional Park: http://www.leevalleypark.org.uk/

• River Wandle: http://www.wandletrust.org/?page_id=601

• Your Tidal Thames: http://www.thames21.org.uk/project/your-tidal-thames/

• Greening the Gateway Kent and Medway: http://www.gtgkm.org.uk/

• Mayesbrook Climate Change Park Project: http://ekn.defra.gov.uk/resources/examples/mayesbrook/

• River restoration key references as mentioned in Physical modifications summary in Section 7 ‘The significant water issues’

• River Restoration Centre: http://www.therrc.co.uk/

• Restoring England’s Wetlands: http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/homeandleisure/wildlife/31380.aspx

• London Rivers Action Plan: http://www.therrc.co.uk/lrap.php

• Thames River Basin District catchments: Facts and statistics – Further information on the statistics for each of the catchments and sub-catchments in the Thames River Basin District. This contains information such as water body classification results and reasons for being classified at lower than good ecological condition, a map of the catchment and who the Environment Agency contact is for each catchment and how you can contact them. To access the document, visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx

• Catchment information as referenced in Section 8 ‘The catchments in the Thames River Basin District’ – Further information about catchments and sub-catchments such as catchment plans or more detailed catchment summaries. To access all of these documents, visit http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk/research/planning/140092.aspx

http://www.defra.gov.uk/environment/natural/whitepaper/local-nature-partnerships/



https://www.gov.uk/government/policies/supporting-economic-growth-through-local-enterprise-partnerships-and-enterprise-zones

https://www.gov.uk/government/policies/supporting-economic-growth-through-local-enterprise-partnerships-and-enterprise-zones

http://www.leevalleypark.org.uk/

http://www.wandletrust.org/?page_id=601

http://www.thames21.org.uk/project/your-tidal-thames/

http://www.gtgkm.org.uk/

http://ekn.defra.gov.uk/resources/examples/mayesbrook/

http://www.therrc.co.uk/



http://www.therrc.co.uk/lrap.php





10 Consultation information Summary of consultation questions Consultation questions The significant issues (pages 15 - 24)




The catchments (pages 25 - 44)

4 How are the significant issues in a catchment affecting the water environment and society? Please specify which catchment(s) your response refers to and provide relevant information to help explain your answer. 5 How do you think the challenges affecting each catchment should be tackled and what would you do first? Please specify which catchment(s) your response refers to. Please consider any resource implications.

How to respond The Environment Agency would prefer you to respond online at: https://consult.environment-agency.gov.uk/portal/ho/wfd/water/choices. This will allow you to manage your comments more effectively, while helping us to gather and summarise responses quickly and accurately. Alternatively, there is a Word response form available for each River Basin District which you can download and use to write your response before you submit it online, or you can email it to [email protected].

You can view the consultation documents and consultation questions online. But, if you would prefer a printed version of the document, please call D-J Gent on 0118 953 5716 or email [email protected]. Alternatively, hard copies of this document can be viewed at our offices at the address below.

Please return written responses by 22 December 2013 to:

D-J Gent, River Basin Programme Manager

Environment Agency

Kings Meadow House

Kings Meadow Road

Reading

RG1 8DQ



mailto:[email protected]?subject=Challenges%20and%20Choices%20(Thames%20River%20Basin%20District)

mailto:[email protected]?subject=Challenges%20and%20Choices%20(Thames%20River%20Basin%20District)


What the Environment Agency will use the responses for The Environment Agency will use the responses from this consultation to shape the review and update of the Thames River Basin Management Plan. Environment Agency staff dealing with this consultation will see all responses in full. Other Environment Agency staff may also see the responses to help them plan future consultations.

A full summary of the responses will be published on the Environment Agency website.

How the Environment Agency will use your information The Environment Agency will make all comments (apart from personal information) publicly available on the Environment Agency website. This includes comments received online, by email, post and by fax, unless you have specifically requested that your response be kept confidential. Only names of organisations that respond and not individuals will be published.

If you respond online or provide an email address, you will receive an acknowledgement of your response. After the consultation has closed a summary of the responses will be published on the Environment Agency website. You will be contacted to let you know when this is available. You will also be notified of any forthcoming river basin consultations unless you request otherwise.

Under the Freedom of Information Act 2000, the Environment Agency may be required to publish your response to this consultation, but will not include any personal information. If you have requested your response be kept confidential, it may still be required to provide a summary.

If you have any questions or complaints about the way this consultation has been carried out, please contact:

Emma Hammonds, Consultation Co-ordinator

Environment Agency, Horizon House, Deanery Road, Bristol, BS1 5AH.
