Wow! What a year it has been for the Becks to Bay partnership. We’ve really grown, developed and delivered this year and it wouldn’t have been possible without you. 2017 has seen the delivery of a wide number of projects. Not only that but it has also seen some exciting new partnership opportunities arising and new connections evolving. A major development was the publication of this website which we hope you find a useful tool for learning more about your…

On the 30th November DEFRA announced that from April 2018 all farmers in England will need to follow new rules to protect water quality. These rules will require farmers to keep soil on their land, match nutrients to crop and soil needs and keep livestock fertilisers and manure out of the water.  This will benefit farmers financially by saving money via greater nutrient use efficiency, increasing productivity and reducing the loss of soils and land. Additionally, these measures will also…

Celebrating the benefits of a collaborative approach for people and wildlife Our Becks to Bay partnership for South Cumbria is part of the wider national Catchment Based Approach (CaBA) promoting partnerships for action. There are now 102 partnerships nationally, with over 36,000 people being involved, so thanks to everyone of you who has helped us here in South Cumbria. For every £1 directly invested by Government, the partnerships have raised £8.63 from non-governmental funders. Over the past year Becks to…

Fantastic news! South Cumbria Rivers Trust (SCRT) have been awarded funding from Tesco’s Bags of Help initiative. Thank you to everyone who voted! The project, ‘What Lies Beneath – Helping your local beck’ will help local communities in Barrow & Ulverston connect with local becks and rivers, through a ‘what’s in your river day’, and training to monitor the health of a local river or beck. SCRT would like to support the community in Barrow and Ulverston to establish their…

Lancaster University have been successful in gaining NERC-funded research for Natural Flood Management (NFM) in Cumbria. In South Cumbria this will focus on the Kent catchment, where a number of projects have been proposed and delivered using NFM techniques. A number of pilot studies are underway, however, little research has been undertaken to determine the broader scale impact of these measures for the communities many miles downstream. Therefore, this research will help to fill some of these gaps by undertaking large…

Maps identifying the opportunities for a range of Natural Flood Management techniques are now available for the Kent catchment on our website. The Rivers Trust commission JBA and Lancaster University to model the potential impact of Natural Flood Management (NFM) on peak flows. This helps to identify opportunities and suggest which sub-catchments may be most suitable for NFM interventions. Modelling was undertaken for the following options: Woodland and Scrub Planting Run-off Attenuation Features Soil Improvement The maps also identify the…

Monitoring Data – Where does it go? The Environment Agency are currently reviewing their monitoring programme and how this links with other organisations such as Rivers Trusts and the Catchment Partnerships. Therefore, this offers us a great opportunity to get involved and influence some of the outcomes. We’ve been working at a national level to discuss how the monitoring you help us undertake, including riverfly surveys and electrofishing, can be co-ordinated with data from other sources. This includes information from…

We have been working with a number of organisations and the local community to start the exciting task of pulling together a large-scale project in the Kent Catchment. However, it’s not just us, we are also asking you to share your concerns and what you love about your local river. This project will gather peoples perceptions on the catchment, aiming to address some of the concerns and celebrate what a beautiful river the Kent is. Additionally, it will explore the heritage…

What lies beneath: helping your local beck SCRT are bidding to bag a cash boost from the Tesco Bags of Help initiative to support on-going riverfly monitoring in the Barrow and Ulverston area. Tesco teamed up with Groundwork to launch its community funding scheme, which sees grants of £4,000, £2,000 and £1,000 – raised from carrier bag sales in Tesco stores – being awarded to local community projects. Three groups in every Tesco region have been shortlisted to receive the…

Happy #binitforbeaches week! LOVEmyBEACH is supporting the week long, nationwide #binitforbeaches campaign which focuses on raising awareness of the damage flushed wet wipes has on the UK’s beaches. If you’re planning on visiting one the UK’s hundreds of designated bathing water beaches this year you might be shocked to find a wet wipe buried in the sand next to your picnic spot. It’s unlikely these wipes have been left here as litter; millions of wipes are wrongly flushed down the…