Mark MusprattA new trust will push to improve water quality along one of the UK’s longest rivers.
The Great Ouse Rivers Trust said only 10% of the Great Ouse – which stretches from Buckinghamshire to the Wash at Norfolk – is in “good” condition.
It said issues such as sewage, agriculture and climate change had “left Britain’s rivers in crisis”.
Phil Rothwell, chair of the trust, said it was a “crucial and critical time for the UK’s rivers”.
Invasive species also threatened habitats and an unpredictable climate added pressure, with alternating droughts and floods, the trust added.
As well as protecting wildlife, the trust also wants to identify safe areas for wild swimming and water sports.
Ian JacksonThe River Great Ouse flows for 160 miles (257km), from west to east, passing through Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Norfolk, where it enters the North Sea near King’s Lynn.
But only 10% of the waterway was rated as being in “good” ecological condition by the Environment Agency – lower than the national average of 14%.
The region is also seeing rapid development which leads to water scarcity and pollution, it said.
Ian JacksonThe new trust will work with water companies, landowners and farmers “to support healthy river management”.
It wants to improve plans for managing waste water and flood risks, with a particular focus on “nature-based solutions” to flooding, such as tree-planting and wetland restoration.
June EssexThe trust is also keen to identify safe areas for wild swimming, canoeing and paddleboarding, to help people make the most of the Great Ouse.
Mr Rothwell told the BBC: “It’s a fantastic place, it’s very relaxing, and I think people are drawn to water.
“They like to think it’s being looked after and they can swim in it, their children can swim in it, their dogs can swim in it.”
‘Lifeblood’
The new venture is also backed by the British naturalist and presenter, Steve Backshall.
He said: “Water is our planet’s lifeblood and we all have a role to play in protecting it.”
He said the launch of the trust was “a vital step towards safeguarding the health and biodiversity of this precious ecosystem for generations to come.”
Steve Backshall
