Generally speaking, assessing pollution in the Sid is about “the twin approach of pressure on water companies and citizen science”
Whilst the River Sid is relatively pollution-free, other rivers in Devon are not so fortunate.
For example, early last month, there was an incident on the River Lew, near Okehampton, when dozens of fish were killed after a chemical incident at the river.
Nearer to home, there have been several initiatives happening, following pollution incidents and penalties.
Firstly, as reported in the local press, an East Devon group turns pollution police amid SWW River Otter use. Or rather, as related by the Otter Valley Association, there has just been the launch of the Campaign to #ReviveTheRiverOtter:
We are calling on local people to join the ORCA Facebook group, and to share images of the river on social media with the hashtag #ReviveTheRiverOtter.
Key points from the announcement (read release here):
- The middle and lower reaches of the River Otter are now so contaminated with sewage-related pollutants, that it is classed in the bottom 20% of rivers in England for water quality.
- Shocking figures from local environmental groups suggest that the River Otter has the highest phosphate levels of any major watercourse in Devon and Cornwall.
- 70% of phosphate levels in the Otter come from the sewage system, according to the Environment Agency.
- South West Water say they’ve no plans to invest in their local sewage infrastructure to improve the dire water quality of the Otter, but we believe that people power can change the minds of their senior managers.
- We are asking local people during their summer walks, to photograph their most, and least, favourite parts of the river, post on social media, tagging Richard Foord, ORCA – Otter River Catchment Action and South West Water
Peter Williams, OVA lead analyst, summarises the quality issues: “The data shows the Otter has the highest phosphate levels of any major river in Devon and Cornwall, and goes some way to explaining why it’s the only river system in the area classified as ‘poor’ by the Environment Agency. High levels of phosphate cause slimy algal blooms on the riverbed and decreased oxygen levels, leading to severe consequences for plant life, wildlife and fish populations. According to the Environment Agency, approximately 70 percent of the phosphate entering the Otter is a result of discharges from South West Water’s sewage infrastructure.”
In another action, pollution penalties are fuelling the fight to fix Devon’s rivers – as Clinton Devon Estates work on the River Mere in North Devon. And as the press release from CDE says, the estate has teamed up with partners on the water restoration project:
A year-long project to carry out a detailed assessment of the water quality on a tributary of the river Torridge is being led by Clinton Devon Estates – using a grant made up of fines paid by water companies for environmental breaches. More than £200,000 has been awarded to the Estates by the Government’s Rural Payments Agency (RPA) to carry out the monitoring work on the River Mere and two of its catchments that flow into the Torridge in North Devon.
Dr Sam Bridgewater, Clinton Devon Estates’ Director of Environment Strategy and Evidence, said the data gathered would be used to draw up restoration plans for up to 60 hectares of land around the river Mere and its tributaries, bringing benefits for water quality and biodiversity.
Dr Bridgewater said: “Whenever there’s an opportunity to do more for nature we try and grasp that…We’ve done a lot of work in East Devon with the Lower Otter Restoration Project and now the Heaths to Sea Landscape Recovery Project.
“This is an opportunity to do something in North Devon – which we have wanted to do for some time. There are some lovely water courses, and this is the starting point to really understand what’s going on there and come up with some plans to make things better.”
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