Anglers urged to help in fight to protect our waterways from pollution

October 28, 2020 Guest User

THE Angling Trust is taking a stand against the growing threat of pollution in UK waterways with a new drive that aims to preserve not only our fishing, but also the health of the whole aquatic environment.

Named ‘Anglers Against Pollution’, the campaign is demanding better monitoring of our waters and proper enforcement of laws and regulations, leading to more efficient and stringent prosecution of those found guilty of large-scale pollutions.

It follows damaging recent assessments that revealed none of our waters meet European chemical pollution standards.

Britain’s anglers have a long history of striving to protect our rivers and stillwaters dating back to the creation of the Anglers Conservation Association in 1948, and the Trust is hoping that those within our sport will once again step up to the plate and put pressure on Government by signing the petition that was launched on October 15.

John Cheyne, National Regions Manager at the Trust, is spearheading the initiative, and he told us:

“The waters we fish are in crisis, suffering from all forms of pollution, from agricultural run-off to plastics, chemical pesticides and raw sewage. Time is no longer a luxury we can afford in the fight for our environment.”

The new campaign will not be seeking the creation of new legislation to tackle the growing pollution threat, as John believes that current laws are sufficient – they’re simply not being enforced properly.

“The Environment Agency has seen its budget cut by 50 per cent since 2010, so proper monitoring becomes a real challenge,” he added.
“When it does catch a perpetrator, they get off far too easily. Take water companies. The fine they face is often cheaper than the cost of fixing a pollution issue, so they simply take the hit and continue to offend.
“Now is the time to take a stand. Get behind our new campaign and let’s demand that our rivers, lakes and canals are clean and healthy places full of fish and abundant wildlife for us all to enjoy.”

Post-lockdown rod licence sales soaring - where should the money go?

October 20, 2020 Guest User

THE ENVIRONMENT Agency has been handed the chance to tackle some of the biggest issues facing fishing after receiving millions of pounds in extra income.

In the four weeks following the lifting of lockdown restrictions on May 13, more than 335,000 rod licences were sold, a 230 per cent rise in less than two months and 200,000 more than were sold in the corresponding period last year.

Newcomers to the sport accounted for the majority of the spike in sales, but there is nothing particularly new about the major issues facing angling. Anglers have been crying out for authorities to address growing problems with issues such as water quality and predation, but they aren’t the only problems and now a debate has begun on how the extra cash should best be spent.

The EA will obviously have its work cut out trying to please everyone, so we asked fishery owners, club officials and some of angling’s unsung heroes to tell us where they think the money should go.

Chris Wood, Shrewsbury Angling Club Secretary

SPEND IT ON: Improving river fishing

“The money should be put back into rivers and supporting angling clubs. There are several ways to do this, but the most important is by making fisheries safer. By this I mean building platforms along stretches to make river fishing comfortable and accessible. Clambering down steep banks and cutting your way through a jungle isn’t for everyone, particularly when so many of us are used to sitting by a manicured commercial where you can park next to your peg.
“River fishing’s popularity is on the rise – our club is completely full, with a 300-angler waiting list – so we need to make our rivers accessible to all. By building more platforms you get more bums on the bank so you can police a stretch more easily, as anglers can report anything dodgy.”

We need to make our rivers accessible to all

Mark Barrow ,underwater cameraman for Beneath British Waters

SPEND IT ON: Tackling the major polluters

“The key area to address is the amount of pollution that goes into our rivers, particularly sewage. I’ve been diving and filming in rivers for 30 years and in the past, I’d film shoals of grayling that were 300-strong. Nowadays in the same areas I find small pockets of 15 or so fish at best.
“I’m sure that all the pollution that enters our rivers is having a negative impact and there needs to be a combined effort between the EA, water companies and all other forces to tackle the problem. There are other issues, of course, but sorting the rivers themselves should be the primary objective.
“I’d like to add that the EA gets a lot of stick, but it does some fantastic work. Its people on the ground are just as frustrated and passionate about all this as we are. The problems may be at the top.”

Do the EA need to take a harder stance on polluters?

Bryan Dray, Wellingborough & District Nene AC Youth Coach

SPEND IT ON: More coaching facilities for juniors and newcomers

“It should be spent on funding grassroots level coaching. We’ve seen a phenomenal number of juniors and newcomers get into fishing this year and we need to keep them interested in angling.
“We’ve got 300 juniors in our club, and our coaching sessions have been key in getting these guys interested. The problem is having the funds to keep it all going.
“It’s been so busy that I’ve pretty much had to give up my day job. We’re also in need of more tackle for the kids to use, as well as a van to transport it.
“If we can continue supporting young anglers and keep encouraging more to the sport, we’ll be able to keep fishing on a healthy grounding for generations to come.”

We’ve seen a phenomenal number of juniors and newcomers get into fishing this year and we need to keep them interested in angling

Kevin Clark, Founder of The Angling Initiative project

SPEND IT ON: Policing our waters better

“I’d love to see the extra money spent on better policing for our rivers. Take my local River Wye for example. It suffers badly from poaching, like many waterways, but it also suffers from other so-called water users doing what they like, with little fear of prosecution.
“In recent years the river has been plagued by high levels of phosphates entering the river from neighbouring farmlands, causing terrible algal blooms, which have a detrimental impact on the water quality.
“There’s also an issue with the amount of water from the river being used for irrigation purposes from various interests along the Wye valley, which the river can’t support. It’s caused some of the lowest water levels I’ve seen in decades, and the fishing has suffered as a result.
“The EA needs to contact the local farmers, make them aware of the problems being caused, and start to do something about it. I’m sure many other rivers are suffering a similar fate...”

May waterways suffer badly from poaching

England has the dirtiest rivers in Europe

October 5, 2020 Guest User

ENGLAND’S rivers are the dirtiest in Europe, Government data reveals.

A report released last month shows not a single river, lake or coastal water in the country is rated as chemically ‘good’. This figure has plummeted from 97 per cent in 2016, when information was last published, though testing methods are now more rigorous.

The shocking state of the country’s rivers has been revealed

The data also showed just 16 per cent of the country’s waterways are classed as meeting the separate ‘good ecological status’ for plants and wildlife, a figure that has remained unchanged since 2016.

“This is shameful,” said Stuart Singleton-White, the Angling Trust’s head of campaigns.
“Our rivers are officially the dirtiest in Europe.”

Across Europe, 40 per cent of surface water bodies are in good health. The figures for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are 65.7, 64 and 31.3 per cent, respectively.

“Water quality has plateaued since 2016, which isn’t good enough,” admitted Environment Agency chair Emma Howard Boyd.

The agency blames sewage discharge from water companies and chemical run-off from industry and farming.

Stuart Singleton-White added:

“We have to see funding to clean up our environment massively increased.
“We need regulators who can do their job properly and we must hold polluters to account.
“We can’t wait, our fish can’t wait, our rivers can’t wait.”

Britain’s rivers will not be left to go to ruin after Brexit, says EA

September 18, 2020 Guest User

A NATIONAL newspaper has been slammed by the Environment Agency for printing an ‘inaccurate and misleading’ story claiming that EA chief Sir James Bevan has endorsed a proposal to reduce cleanliness standards on our rivers following Brexit.

The story appeared on The Guardian’s website two weeks ago, and has been doing the rounds on social media, causing outrage. Now, though, the EA has issued a direct response, stating that no such proposal has been endorsed. According to the EA, in Sir James’ ‘In Praise of Red Tape’ speech on environmental regulation, he merely suggested that the European Union’s Water Framework Directive (WFD) could be changed to give a better measure of the health of Britain’s rivers.

“To claim that Sir James argued to weaken laws on the cleanliness of polluted rivers, as The Guardian reported, is completely false,” said a spokesperson.
“Sir James’ speech instead praised the WFD, but highlighted areas in which it can be altered once we’ve left the EU to better suit our rivers.”

Post-Brexit we take back control of our rivers and use our resources for better environmental outcomes

He added:

“There are four categories in the directive that a river must meet to pass, and these revolve around bringing it back to its natural state. If it fails one, it fails entirely. As a result, only 14 per cent of rivers in Britain qualify for good status under the WFD, but in reality, they’re at their cleanest since the Industrial Revolution.
“The problem is, many of our rivers can never meet the criteria – for example, those in urban areas that cannot return to their natural state. As a result, resources and time are wasted trying to meet criteria on the WFD, which could be used in better ways.”

In essence, what Sir James is saying is that post-Brexit we take back control of our rivers and use our resources for better environmental outcomes, rather than try to meet criteria that don’t give an accurate reflection of their health.

What is the WFD?

Adopted in 2000, the Water Framework Directive established a new integrated approach among EU states towards the protection of the water environment.

It requires the improvement of all aspects of this environment, including rivers, lakes, estuaries, coastal waters and groundwater. Member states are required to implement management planning at river basin level, linking with other areas such as agriculture, land use, biodiversity, tourism, recreation and flood protection.

Britain will no longer be a member of the EU once the Brexit transition period comes to an end on December 31.