04/03/2005 - The Environment
Agency is continuing its work to clean up
bathing waters in North Lancashire and Cumbria
by offering pollution prevention advice to
local farmers.
Agency officers will be visiting livestock
farms in the River Conder area from March
2005 to talk to farmers about ways in which
they can reduce the risk of causing pollution.
The Agency carried out similar visits to 55
farms around the River Cocker last year and
was pleased with the response.
In 2003 the Agency set up a team especially
to tackle ‘diffuse pollution’ – pollution
from land which can be washed into our rivers,
estuaries and seas, such as fertiliser and
manure from farm land or dirty surface water
from roads. This indirect, or ‘diffuse’ pollution
is thought to have a significant impact on
the quality of our bathing waters.
Diffuse pollution officers will visit farms
whose work could affect the River Conder,
offering free advice and guidance on measures
that can be taken to reduce diffuse pollution
in the North West’s watercourses and in the
long-term, coastal bathing waters.
The aim of the visits is to talk to farmers
about how they can profit from a better environment
through best farming practice. The Agency
will offer help and advice on water use, site
drainage, soil management, access to rivers
and streams for livestock, waste disposal
and slurry, silage, oil and chemical storage
– most of which can boost profit margins as
well as water quality.
The team, funded under the European Union’s
INTERREG IIIB Atlantic Area Programme, is
part of a larger project with the specific
aim of Improving Coastal and Recreational
Waters (ICREW) and boosting tourism in the
United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Portugal
and the Canary Islands.
Notes
The farm visits are expected to last for
about two hours at each farm. The initial
visits are purely advisory and will not affect
any Single Farm Payment. No enforcement action
will result as a consequence of the first
visit.
The £6 million (€8.6 million) funding
for the ICREW project is part of the European
Union’s INTERREG IIIB Programme, that promotes
cross-border, transnational and inter-regional
co-operation.
Pilot action 2 of the ICREW project is looking
at resolving diffuse pollution issues which
impact on coastal and inland bathing sites.
The Environment Agency is leading pilot action
2 with the aim of identifying pollution sources,
conducting campaigns with local stakeholders
to reduce pollution levels, and drawing up
specific plans for local pollution reduction
initiatives.
A workshop was held to discuss this initiative
on 17 February 2005 at the Lancashire Wildlife
Trust in Preston. The aim of the meeting was
to bring organisations together to discuss
ways of working together and sharing information
in terms of the work ICREW is doing on pilot
action 2. The workshop was organised by the
Environment Agency and was attended by the
Countryside Landowners’ Association, English
Nature, Lancashire County Council, United
Utilities, the Wildlife Trust, Lancashire
Rural Futures, the Farming and Wildlife Advisory
Group, the Health And Safety Executive, the
RSPB and the National Dairy Farm Assured Scheme
as well as other interested parties.
