As 2019 is now upon us we’re turning our attention to what we’d like to achieve in the year ahead. We’re excited by new plans and ideas; as a partnership of organisations we look at whole catchments from the fells to the sea to identify opportunities. Our vision is for: A healthy, sustainable and diverse catchment system, providing a wide range of benefits which are valued by all. Did you know 2019 is the ‘International Year of the Salmon’? We…

Merry Christmas We’d just like to take this opportunity to wish you all a Merry Christmas and to thank everyone for their hard work and support this year. As usual 2018 has been a busy year and we’ve packed a lot in from projects & community events to monitoring and future planning. Partners have delivered a number of projects including a partnership project between South Cumbria Rivers Trust and United Utilities to undertake catchment assessments in areas which are to…

South Cumbria Rivers Trust (SCRT), a member of the Becks to Bay partnership, undertake fish surveys across South Cumbria during the summer months. SCRT work in partnership with the Environment Agency, who also undertake fish surveys to ensure resources and coverage are maximised. Data is then shared and used as evidence to drive forward actions within the Catchment Plans. The 2018 Electrofishing Report, alongside previous reports, can be found here. 

The Environment Agency has initiated the first consultation on the draft River Basin Management Plan (RBMP’s) which will be issued in 2021. The RBMP’s provide a framework for protecting and enhancing the water environment. The current North West RBMP was published in February 2016 and must be reviewed and updated by 2021. Starting from this year there will be three consultations which will help the Environment Agency shape the updated plans. This year the ‘working together’ consultation offers the opportunity…

Volunteers at Friends of the Lake District’s mass-volunteering Duddon Fell Care Day event last Thursday 8th November made a significant difference to looking after this special part of the Lake District. Ruth Kirk, organiser of the event said, “It was truly rewarding to see so many happy, tired, smiling, mud-streaked faces at the end of day sharing tales over a brew and a slice of cake (or three!). “Our Fell Care Days bring together people of all ages and abilities…

The North West Flood Hub is now live The flood hub is a one stop shop to help householders, businesses, communities and landowners across the North West become more flood resilient. The website has been funded by the North West Regional Flood and Coastal Committee (RFCC) and developed by Newground and other partner agencies. Please follow the link to check out the brand new website here: https://thefloodhub.co.uk

The Environment Agency held a drop-in session in September to share plans regarding the Flood Risk Management Scheme for Kendal. The information presented at this session is now available on the Cumbria Strategic Floods Partnership website in the latest news section. Follow the website for all the latest news regarding flood risk reduction projects and resilience, across Cumbria.

The Environment Agency are holding community ‘drop-in’ sessions in Kendal, Burneside and Staveley on future flood risk management. Kendal on Wednesday 26 September 2018 at Kendal Town Hall Staveley and Ings on Wednesday 17 October 2018 at Staveley Village Hall Burneside on Friday 19 October 2018 at Burneside Cricket Club You are welcome to call in anytime between 3.30pm and 7pm The Drop-ins follow on from previously held public events where the Environment Agency shared the ‘long list’ of flood…

South Cumbria Rivers Trust have been working in partnership with the University of Cumbria as part of their MSc in Ecosystem Services Evaluation. Alongside the University we are part funding an MSc project to help with vital research in our area, looking at the potential pathways for the introduction of Invasive Non-Native Species. It’s a fantastic opportunity to further research and support the work of the Cumbria Freshwater Invasive Non Native Species (CFINNs) Initiative, in a spectacular location. Full information…

Each summer we have a jam packed monitoring programme, comprising a series of fish surveys, riverfly (invertebrate)surveys and some water quality monitoring. However, this year the dry weather condition we experienced in May – July have put a hold on some of this work. Fish surveys in particular have been put on hold, with only a small number being scheduled in for September. This is because river levels were too low earlier in the summer and high water temperatures meant…