RIBBLE RIVERS TRUST

Annual Newsletter: Issue 14 | 2018 Suggested donation: £1 ISSN 2052-8094 PEAT RESTORATION How rivers will benefit from improved moorland

NEW WOODLANDS FOR WATER Volunteers help plant 15,000 trees JOURNEY WATER FRIENDLY THROUGH THE FARMING CATCHMENT Farmers working together for a A guide to our projects better environment from source to sea

RECONNECTING HABITAT - IMPROVING BATHING WATERS - WETLAND CREATION CONTACT Office: 01200 444452 Address: c/o Hanson Cement, Ribblesdale Works, Clitheroe, Lancashire, BB7 4QF.

STAFF

Chief Executive Officer Jack Spees

Office & Publicity Manager Catherine Jaggs [email protected]

Administration Assistant Sabden Peat Charlotte Ireland 10 Fish Pass 2 Restoration [email protected]

Ribble Life Programme Manager Harvey Hamilton-Thorpe Improving Bathing [email protected] 14 Waters Project Officer Adam Walmsley [email protected]

Agricultural Project Officers Nick Prince [email protected] Matthew Powell [email protected] Ceri Katz [email protected] Fish Survey

Catchment Science Coordinator 18 Results Mike Forty [email protected]

Fisheries Officers Paul Peters [email protected] Contents Adam Wheeler [email protected] Foreword Sabden Fish Pass

GIS Officer 1 An overview of 2017 by the Ribble 10 An innovative design helps salmon and Ellie Brown Rivers Trust’s CEO trout over an 18th century weir [email protected]

Education Officers Peat Restoration Circular River Walks Emily Bateman 2 Reducing moorland erosion to improve 11 Take in some of the catchment’s idyllic [email protected] river ecology scenery on newly devised routes Neil Ashworth [email protected]

Volunteer Supervisor Selside Weir Removal Slate Pits Wetland Jonny Walker 3 Enabling better fish migration in the 12 Turning a hillside field into a haven for [email protected] catchment’s nursery streams wildlife while reducing flood risk

TRUSTEES Philip Lord (Chairman) Stainforth Foss Oakenshaw Fish Pass Vince Edmondson (Vice Chair) 4 One of the Ribble Catchment’s beauty 13 A new channel bypasses a large weir, Alan Rowntree (Treasurer) spots, ideal for spotting leaping salmon giving fish access to new habitat Mike Horner Dave Wilmot Dominic Bradley Long Preston Deeps Improving Bathing Water Harvey Marchbank 5 Repositioning a flood bank, allowing 14 Addressing sources of river pollution to Jeff Cowburn nature to take its course improve our coastal waters Mike Ellacott John Bleasdale Skirden Beck Lytham Mussel Tank ©Ribble Rivers Trust 6 Improving the Skirden catchment with 16 A new piece of public art helps to raise Production: Catherine Jaggs woodlands, wetlands and a fish pass awareness of river pollution Charity number: 1070672 Company number: 3498691 Ribble Rivers Trust is the operating Water Friendly Farming Fish Survey Results name of the Ribble Catchment 8 Farmers work together to improve the 18 An overview of how our salmon and Conservation Trust Limited. Forest of Bowland for wildlife trout populations fared in 2017

Website: Facebook: Twitter:  www.ribbletrust.org.uk www.facebook.com/RibbleTrust @RibbleTrust /@RibbleLife Welcome CEO Jack Spees

heeew!!!! What a year… 2017 saw the Trust deliver the most work in the 19 years since the Trust began. After two years of planning and development it has been a pleasureP to see the work happening, particularly because it has been across the whole catchment, covering a wide range of types of work, focused on the key issues, and in the places that will benefit wildlife and importantly people. All this has been possible due to the support of National Lottery players through the Heritage Lottery Fund. This support has allowed us to galvanise Ribble Life, our Catchment Based Approach (CaBA) partnership, quite fitting that the project is called Ribble Life Together! Will you see a kingfisher this WORKING IN PARTNERSHIP experience, socially, mentally, physically and year? Our Through the partnership we have been able to environmentally! projects have attract funding to support Ribble Life Together, a common but also deliver activities in locations that LOOKING TO THE FUTURE otherwise we couldn’t have. This highlights the aim: to help 2017 was also quite a strange year for me. At importance of partnership working and that you see more times I didn’t really get much chance to take in we are stronger together. wildlife. the start of the Ribble Life Together project

and the achievements in the first year. Why It was fantastic to see so many partners and you ask? I am already having to think about supporters attend the Launch event for Ribble the future! Life Together in April 2017. It showcased the various activities that we are delivering over Ribble Life Together will deliver huge amounts the three and a half years of the project. One of improvements and benefit, but it is not the of the highlights of the launch was hearing end, there is still so much to be done to about experiences from Sir Tom Finney improve the Ribble Catchment and realise the Community High School that helped shape our benefits it can provide to visitors and the project, and also from one of our dedicated communities within. As such, future planning volunteers Lorraine Ritchen-Stones. Both were has begun, which has been made complicated quite emotional, and highlighted the by Brexit, largely due to uncertainty around importance of what we do and how it affects funding, legislation, and motivation for the people, both the outcomes of our work, but environment. We have been fortunate in the involvement in doing our work. securing our first significant amounts of EU

funding in 2016 and 2017, but Brexit is very A BIG THANK YOU TO OUR MEMBERS, likely going to vastly reduce potential sources VOLUNTEERS AND SUPPORTERS of funding available to make the catchment We are very lucky to have such keen members better in the future. But we won’t give up, and and volunteers, and their support and with your support we will keep on making the To find out involvement is invaluable. To that end, in 2018 Ribble Catchment a better place for people more about we are planning a barbeque for the late spring and wildlife. membership, and early summer to say thank you, and also turn to the to encourage a few new volunteers to get I hope you enjoy this newsletter and your back page. involved by seeing how it can be a rewarding journey through the catchment!

13 R. Calder

Our journey through the Ribble Catchment begins at the headwaters of the Cam Fell Peat River Ribble in the Yorkshire Dales National Park, where two streams, Cam Beck and Gayle Beck, Restoration converge to form a nascent River Ribble.

The moorland that Drainage channels, known as grips, predators. Furthermore, the speed at envelops the two streams were dug decades ago on moorlands which the water level can rise poses a throughout the country to bring what flood risk to people living is degraded due to was perceived as ‘unproductive land’ downstream. excessive peat erosion into agricultural production by During the summer of 2017, more increasing drainage for sheep grazing. caused by historic than 25km of grips were filled in and Over the years, erosion has caused reprofiled with a grant from Natural draining and land grips to widen and deepen, resulting England. The steep sides of the grips, management and this has in a loss of valuable peat and blanket which were vulnerable to erosion, bog habitat. impacted on the health of were flattened by diggers to create a our rivers in several ways. The influx of peat sediment into our more resistant, graduated slope and becks has affected the water quality the bare exposed peat was re-turfed. and impacted on invertebrate and fish Healthy moorland acts like a natural populations, particularly during the sponge. These restoration works will spawning seasons when fine sediment enable a greater volume of rainfall to can choke the eggs. be stored and released at a steadier The rapid moorland drainage has also rate, reinstating a more natural caused the becks’ hydrology to hydrology in the becks and improving become uncharacteristically ‘flashy’, their water quality to support greater leading to over-widened, eroded numbers of fish and invertebrates. channels with a shallow depth of water for most of the year round. This Cam Beck: over-widened, shallow channel constitutes poor habitat for aquatic wildlife because shallow water can warm rapidly during summer months, raising the water temperature to a level that fish cannot tolerate, resulting in fish kills. Aquatic wildlife living in shallow becks is vulnerable to pollution becasue the dilution rate is reduced. Shallow water also leaves fish exposed to

2 Drone image showing locations of gravel deposits before the weir removal Selside Weir Removal

Coming down from the fells and arriving at Gayle Beck, we find a loose stone structure crossing the channel. Although R. Calder not a significant barrier in terms of its size, its impact on fish was considerable because of its location within the catchment’s headwaters, which crucially act as nursery streams for salmon and trout.

Selside weir was made from un-set cobbles and boulders topped with stone slabs. An archaeological survey found that it once formed part of an old field boundary but was no longer in use. A fish survey determined that more salmon, trout and bullhead were found downstream of the structure than upstream, indicating that it was interfering with the natural migration of fish. As well as impeding fish movement, the weir was also affecting the transport of gravel along the riverbed. Gravel is crucial to spawning salmon and trout as they lay their eggs in this type of substrate. With the beck downstream of the weir starved of gravel, the amount of spawning habitat for fish was limited. The weir was removed in June 2017 as part of the Ribble Life Together project, reconnecting the upstream and downstream habitat. To monitor resulting changes in gravel movement, students from Durham University surveyed a 400m stretch of the beck by drone before the weir was removed to create a 3D model of the channel. It is hoped that over time, riffles and pools will naturally begin to form downstream of the weir, increasing the amount of spawning habitat for fish and boosting their populations. Watch the video! Search YouTube for ‘Selside Weir Removal by Drone’. Selside Weir before and after removal 3 Ribblesdale Farmers’ Group

In early 2017, farmers with land in the Long Preston Deeps area formed a group to look at ways to deliver

R. Calder natural flood risk management projects. The projects aim not only to reduce the risk of flooding downstream, but also improve the water quality of the River Ribble and enhance their collective 2,600 hectares of farmland for both wildlife Stainforth Foss and their businesses. Just north of Settle, the River Ribble cascades as they make their annual cuts across the North Craven Fault journey upstream to the catchment’s and tumbles down an impressive headwaters to spawn. series of cascades know as Stainforth The salmon run is one of the most Force, or Stainforth Foss locally. remarkable journeys in the animal This local beauty spot is a popular kingdom, epitomising the phrase picnic destination in the summer and ‘survival of the fittest’. Atlantic salmon the famous Ribble Way footpath cease to feed once they enter the passes right beside it. freshwater environment and so must rely on their energy reserves to battle Immediately upstream of the foss is a their way upstream against the flow The formation of the Ribblesdale picturesque old packhorse bridge that of water, overcoming natural and man Farmers’ Group followed on from dates back to circa 1675. Under the -made obstacles, tolerating pollution successes with the Long Preston care of the National Trust since 1931, and evading predators. Floodplain Project (see opposite), it’s one of the most photographed which has carried out various bridges in the catchment and was the Only the strongest survive the journey schemes to allow the River Ribble to subject of the winning entry in our through to spawning and only around take a more natural course and 2017 photography competition run as 5% will make it back out to sea to reconnect it with its floodplain, as well part of the Ribble Life Together repeat the journey for a second year. as restoring wetland habitat for project. It is therefore crucial that our rivers wading birds. provide optimal habitat if the Atlantic From mid-October to mid-November, salmon is to survive as a species. Workshops and training events are salmon can be seen leaping the being run for the farmers to improve their knowledge and awareness of how to derive the most benefit from the land without compromising the natural value of this unique part of the catchment. The group, totalling 25 local farmers, has so far been learning about the importance of good soil structure and nutrient management. Ribblesdale Farmers’ Group is being facilitated by the Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust, with support from the Ribble Trust and three years of funding from the European Union via the Countryside Stewardship’s Facilitation Fund. It is hoped that working together as a group will enable better access to funding for capital projects and therefore have a greater impact on the environment. Photo by Peter Knight, winner of our photography competition in 2017 4 Long Preston Deeps (John Bentley—Alamy Stock Photo) Long Preston Flood Banks

R. Calder Travelling south down the River Ribble past Settle, we arrive at a unique part of the catchment called Long Preston Deeps. Despite its designation as a Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), the habitat is poor in places.

Sandwiched between the Yorkshire Dales and the Forest of of the damaged flood bank 25 metres further back from the Bowland, the Long Preston floodplain has been designated river’s edge. as an SSSI because of the unique interaction between the The relocation of the flood bank will result in a sizeable area river and the land surrounding it, creating landscape of land that will readily flood, helping some wetland habitat features that are particularly important to breeding wading to become re-established. Fencing will be erected to allow birds such as snipe, lapwing, curlew and oystercatcher. the new vegetation to mature before livestock are Flooding is a natural river process and has occurred permitted to graze the area. This allows the farmer to regularly at Long Preston Deeps. As such, flood retain productive land. The embankment will also be embankments have been constructed by farmers seeking planted with 300 low-crown height trees to provide stability to improve the drainage of their land to increase and additional habitat. production. Since the land is now wetted less frequently, Not only will the works benefit wildlife, they will also rare habitat has been lost and with it, a proportion of the provide an element of floodwater storage during high flows, wildlife that relies on this type of environment. reducing the risk of flooding downstream. The Long Preston Floodplain partnership has been working to improve the area for a number of years. It comprises a range of stakeholders and interest groups, including the Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust, RSPB, Environment Agency, Natural England and the Ribble Rivers Trust. The partnership’s aim is to improve the condition of the SSSI to encourage a greater biodiversity. The project partners identified an eroded flood embankment towards the lower extent of the floodplain. After negotiations with the landowner, funding was secured The flood bank being relocated from the Environment Agency to reposition a 500m section 5 R. Calder

Our journey through the catchment takes us across the county border as the Skirden’s River Ribble flows into Lancashire. Skirting along the edge of Woodlands the Forest of Bowland, we leave the Ribble behind for a while as we explore some of the tributaries in this Area of Outstanding Trees provide countless benefits for New woodlands were agreed with the ecology and health of a river landowners on four farms, resulting in Natural Beauty (AONB). catchment, not only within the 13,700 new native trees being planted watercourses themselves, but also the across an area of nearly nine hectares The first of these wider environment. These include; within the Skirden catchment. tributaries is the Skirden • More varied and abundant habitat Working with the Forest of Bowland Beck sub-catchment, for wildlife, promoting biodiversity AONB and the RSPB, the new whose unique topography woodlands were carefully designed so • has been shaped by A means of absorbing carbon as not to disrupt existing pockets of dioxide from the atmosphere, important plant assemblages or glaciation. With incised reducing the rate of climate change wading bird habitat. channels and glacial • Casting of shade over watercourses, The trees have been planted as part of terraces, the becks are keeping the water temperature the Ribble Life Together project and disconnected from their cooler for aquatic wildlife on hot were funded by the Heritage Lottery days Fund, Environment Agency, Woodland floodplains, which means Trust, and the European Union via the they rise rapidly during • Improved soil structure, allowing LIFE Integrated Project ‘Natural periods of heavy rainfall, more rainfall to be absorbed and Course’. released slowly into watercourses posing a flood risk to Volunteers helped to plant the trees villages downstream and • Reduced surface run-off, meaning week in, week out, from the start of less soil, nutrients and pollutants November 2017 right through the washing away fish eggs are washed into watercourses. winter, for which we are most grateful. during spawning seasons. Using GIS mapping software, we It is hoped that the new woodlands created a tool which allows us to will encourage more wildlife to the prioritise where new woodlands area, improve the water quality of the should be planted in order to derive becks and reduce the likelihood of the greatest benefit for rivers. The flash floods, benefitting both the Skirden catchment, owing to its people that live in the area and the undulating topography, incised populations of fish that spawn in the channels and lack of tree cover, was Skirden catchment. highlighted as a priority.

6 Skirden’s Hungrill Wetlands Fish Pass

There are various forms that a Working with the landowners of four wetland can take, from ponds and farms in the Skirden catchment, ten scrapes, to water meadows and wetland features will be created as upland peat bogs. Each type of part of the Heritage Lottery funded wetland has the potential to intercept Ribble Life Together project. rainfall and slow the speed at which it The design and location of each runs off the land into rivers. This gives wetland was carefully considered in sediment, nutrients and pollutants order to provide the most benefit to time to settle out of the water before wildlife. The creation of small, reaching our rivers and streams. The shallow, irregularly shaped pools with slower overland flow also reduces the muddy edges will supply wading birds likelihood of flash flooding. with a rich diet of insect life during the Wetlands aren’t just beneficial to rivers breeding season and hopefully either, they’re a priority habitat for improve their survival rates. The conservation in their own right, numbers of breeding waders will be supporting many species of bird, surveyed annually by the RSPB. amphibian, insect and mammal. It is hoped that the new wetlands, Hungrill Weir was a stepped, vertical Wading bird conservation is of combined with the new woodlands, weir located on Hungrill Beck, which particular concern in the Forest of will significantly improve the water is a tributary of Skirden Beck. The Bowland. According to the RSPB, the quality of the becks within the Skirden weir was originally constructed to numbers of lapwing, curlew, catchment so that invertebrate and create a ford, providing access across oystercatcher, snipe and redshank fish populations may recover. the beck for agricultural purposes. have declined significantly over the Nowadays, the ford enables access to past decade due to the drainage of a private dwelling. agricultural land, resulting in fewer areas for the birds to feed and raise It was identified that the structure chicks. posed a significant barrier to fish seeking to migrate upstream because of the shallow depth of water at the base of each step, which did not provide fish with sufficient depth from which to jump. Since removal of the weir was not an option, modifications were made using a combination of loose rocks and timber baffles to create additional steps, each lower than the originals. The design incorporated deeper pools at the base of each step and notches were cut to allow fish of varying size to traverse the structure. The modifications to Hungrill Weir have meant that the beck’s habitat is now better connected. Migratory salmon and trout now have access to a further 4.5 kilometres of potential spawning grounds, which we hope will help to increase fish populations in the Skirden catchment.

7 R. Calder

The River Loud Farmers’ Group learn about the RSPB’s Bowland Wading Bird Project

Staying within the Forest of Bowland AONB, our Farming in the journey takes us into the River Hodder catchment, of which the River Loud is Forest of Bowland a major tributary. The Hodder and Loud are sourced from the Diffuse pollution is defined as the Any interventions that are delivered Bowland Fells and flow release of pollutants from a range of will not only improve the water quality through agricultural land activities that, individually, may have of the rivers and streams, but also before converging with no effect on the water environment, contribute to the improvement of but, at the scale of a catchment, can bathing water standards at the coast. the River Ribble near have a significant impact. Whalley. A separate grant from Natural England Some rivers and streams within the has enabled us to set up and facilitate Certain farming practices Forest of Bowland and Pendle Hill the River Loud Farmers’ Group, which areas have been negatively impacted comprises 28 neighbouring farms have had a significant by diffuse pollution from agriculture, covering an area of 4,000 hectares in impact on the health of which includes faecal matter, the Forest of Bowland. sediment, phosphorus, nitrates and the watercourses in this The group meets regularly to pesticides. As a result, the collectively identify ways in which the catchment, so it is watercourses have been unable to water quality of the River Loud and its important that land support the diversity and abundance tributaries can be improved by of river wildlife that would be management improves to reducing diffuse pollution from their expected in such remote and rural farms, as well as improving habitat reduce pollution and settings. restore habitat for wildlife. connectivity and biodiversity on their To help tackle this problem, we’ve land. been working with Natural England on Group members have attended their Catchment Sensitive Farming training events and workshops to initiative for the past five years, increase their knowledge of supporting farmers in identifying environmental management, including opportunities and taking action to improving their land for wading birds address sources of diffuse pollution and pollinating insects, natural flood on their land. management, soil and nutrient Our Farm Advisors arrange a suitable management, hedgerow and time with the farmer to conduct a boundary maintenance, and thorough survey of their land. The Countryside Stewardship applications. visit is followed up with a written The work carried out by this farmers’ report, known as a Pinpoint Plan, group demonstrates that working which highlights areas on the farm together at a catchment scale can where improvements could be made achieve greater environmental and identifies grants that may be benefits than would be possible if available to help the farmer to carry each farm operated in isolation. out the works. 8 High Head Wood One of the members of the River Loud Farmers’ Group identified a suitable area of land for woodland planting near Chipping to help to reduce diffuse pollution in Leagram Brook, a tributary of the River Loud.

Approximately 400m of Leagram The woodland will benefit the Brook was fenced off to stop aquatic wildlife inhabiting Leagram livestock from gaining access to the Brook as the trees will intercept watercourse, preventing direct surface run-off from the inputs of faecal matter and reducing surrounding farmland that may the amount of soil erosion caused contain pollutants. Intercepting by cattle walking up and down the rainfall will also help to reduce the riverbanks. risk of flooding downstream. The fenced area was planted with Once established, the trees will cast 2,000 native trees with the help of shade over the brook and maintain volunteers to link existing pockets of favourable conditions for fish during woodland, creating a larger area of hot summer days by keeping the habitat for wildlife. The works were water temperature cooler. delivered as part of the Ribble Life Together project. The original weir at Mill Lane Mill Lane Fish Pass Also near Chipping, a weir and culvert on an unnamed tributary of the River Loud had been found to be limiting the upstream migration of trout and salmon, which was believed to be contributing to low fish populations within the River Loud Catchment.

Mill Lane Weir is situated at the end trout and eels, which migrate up of a 50m long culvert on the former this brook. site of ‘Little Mill’, which used to In June 2017, two extra steps were make clay drainpipes. Upstream of constructed to reduce the height of the mill was an intricate system of each obstacle and make it easier weirs, mill races, sluices and lodges, for fish to ascend. The works were which were built to supply water to delivered as part of the Ribble Life the mill. Together project and funded by the Although the mill has now been Heritage Lottery Fund and demolished, some of the structures Environment Agency. remain, like this weir and culvert. This fish easement has unlocked a With a height of over 1m, the weir further 5km of potential spawning was a barrier to the natural habitat for fish. migration of fish species such as 9 Sabden Weir Fish Pass

Sabden Weir was built in the late 18th century to provide a

R. Calder supply of water to the nearby Sabden Printworks. Having served its purpose, the weir stood redundant, however it continued to restrict the natural migration of fish.

The Ribble Trust always prefers to channel, creating a greater depth of remove a weir in its entirety as it is the water for fish to swim up. The works Our journey through the most effective way of enabling fish to were delivered as part of the Ribble catchment returns us migrate. However this is not always Life Together project with funding briefly to the main River an option when the subsequent from the Heritage Lottery Fund and erosion could pose a risk to buildings, the Environment Agency. Ribble before we make roads and infrastructure, as was the A further 7km of potential spawning case here in Sabden. our way up another major habitat has now been unlocked on tributary, the River Calder. Instead, boulders were set into the Sabden Brook, which will hopefully existing flat face of Sabden Weir to result in an increase in migratory fish The Calder Catchment is funnel the flow of water into a zig-zag populations such as salmon and trout. characterised by mill towns such as Burnley, Nelson, Colne and Accrington, which were at the forefront of the Industrial Revolution. Rivers were crucial for supplying water to the various industries and as a result, became heavily modified with the construction of weirs, sluices and mill races.

The industries have since ranged in size from 31cm adults to declined and most mills Monitoring 11cm juveniles, demonstrating that have been demolished, the fish pass was effective for all life Owing to its innovative design, Sabden stages. A further 8 trout were found but the in-river structures fish pass was chosen for a discrete immediately downstream of the weir that have been left behind investigation to assess its effectiveness having not attempted the pass, while continue to damage the in enabling fish to move upstream of 20 fish moved away from the netting the weir. area, either upstream or downstream, riverine ecology. evading recapture. A total of 41 resident non-migratory brown trout were captured from the brook above the weir. They were given a distinctive marking before being released downstream of the weir. The natural homing instinct of brown trout resulted in 13 of them successfully using the fish pass to return to their upstream pools. They The original weir 1410 Bluebell Wood Weir Removal

Original weir Circular River Site of weir after removal Walks As part of the Ribble Life Together project, we’ve been Bluebell Wood Weir was situated on the main River Calder upstream from developing circular walk routes and guides that take in some of Towneley Park in Burnley. It is our catchment’s most scenic and intriguing waterways. The believed to have been constructed in first in the series to be released follows the course of the rivers the 1960s to help oxygenate the water, which at the time was heavily Calder and Brun around Burnley. polluted by water discharging from Burnley has a rich industrial heritage available over the course of the 3-year mines upriver. and its very existence is intrinsically project. As well as paper guides, the The water quality has since vastly linked with the presence of the rivers routes will be available to download improved and the weir was left Calder and Brun, which powered the from ribblelifetogether.org. An app surplus to requirements. However, it town’s mills and factories. is also being created that will posed a barrier to the natural complement the routes, providing the The new 8-mile walking route offers a migration of fish species such as walker with images, short videos and mix of the cultural and natural heritage salmon and trout, which migrate up audio recordings for a fully immersive of the rivers that have shaped Burnley, the River Calder to spawn. river experience! contrasting between the urban rivers In June 2017, the central section of at the heart of the town and rural The walks are designed to increase the weir was removed in order to streams with fantastic views over the people’s access to and enjoyment of allow fish to pass freely upstream. Calder Valley to Pendle Hill. rivers and nature, whilst raising Being one of the last remaining awareness of issues that can threaten Many of the Ribble Trust’s project sites barriers to fish migration on the River the health of our rivers, streams and are incorporated into the walk, Calder, these works have now given wildlife. including fish passage works that were fish access to almost the entire undertaken as part of the Urban River Volunteers improving footpaths length of the river. Enhancement Scheme in 2013/2014 The work was undertaken with a and the more recent Bluebell Wood grant from Tesco’s Bags of Help weir removal (see right). Volunteers Fund, which distributes monies have helped to undertake footpath raised from the plastic bag charge. improvements where required. The grant also funded educational A further 14 river walks covering visits for school children and guided different areas of the catchment are in river walks. development and will be made 11 R. Calder Slate Pits Wetland under construction Slate Pits Staying within the Calder Catchment, we head away from Burnley over the edge of the West Pennines Wetland towards Accrington. Several streams flow from the moors and converge in the town, which made The Lancashire Wildlife Trust, one of encourage a greater diversity of Accrington an ideal place our catchment partners, has been wildlife to the area, such as great to construct mills during working to improve the upland crested newt, common frog, and the Industrial Revolution. habitats of the Pennine Moors with dragonflies. Due to its location on the funding from the Scout Moor Wind upland fringe, it is also hoped that As the town grew in size, Farm Habitat Enhancement Fund. An breeding wading birds such as snipe opportunity was identified to create a and lapwing will use the wetland. the streams were diverted new wetland along the course of a A footpath and viewing platform will through underground small flush on a hillside above be installed at the new wetland to Accrington. culverts. Hyndburn Brook serve as an educational resource for finally emerges east of the The field offered little ecological value, school and community groups, helping town and flows north to particularly the watercourse itself, to raise awareness of the importance which flowed from an elevated pipe of conserving such habitats and join the River Calder. and down through thick rush before improving water quality in the area. disappearing into a culvert beneath a dual carriageway. During periods of heavy rainfall, the discharge of water was such that a farm track was being eroded. It was agreed that transforming the field into a wetland would not only improve the quality of habitat, but also help to slow the flow of water from the hillside and provide natural flood risk management to benefit the town below. Funding was granted from the Lancashire Environmental Fund to construct the wetland area comprising one permanent pond, one ephemeral pond and a reedbed. Ponds are an immensely valuable resource for wildlife, supporting two thirds of all freshwater species. The variation in wetland habitat will 12 Oakenshaw Weir Bypass Channel

Following the course of Hyndburn Brook as it meanders through fields away from Accrington, we encounter a steep, 4m high weir posing a complete barrier to fish migration. Its sheer scale called for a more radical design of fish pass.

Oakenshaw Weir was historically subsequently planted with 1,650 constructed to supply water to a native trees by volunteers. print works, however this had This project has unlocked almost long since been demolished. a mile of good river habitat for During the Ribble Trust’s annual migratory fish to repopulate and fish surveys, salmon were their numbers will be closely discovered at the foot of the monitored to determine the weir, but this marked the upper effectiveness of the bypass extent of their reach. channel’s design. The only feasible option to A number of well-used public Oakenshaw Weir enable fish passage was to footpaths pass through the area, excavate a bypass channel making Oakenshaw an ideal around the weir through the point of interest for one of the adjacent field. It is believed that 15 circular river walks that are this area of rough grassland was being developed as part of the most likely the original course of Ribble Life Together project. the river before the weir was The project was jointly funded by constructed. funded by the Heritage Lottery Lined with rock and cobbles, the Fund, Natural Course – an EU bypass channel was designed to LIFE funded project, and the be as natural as possible whilst Windfall Fund – a partnership maintaining a defence against between EnergieKontor and the erosion. The whole field was PROSPECTS Foundation. Volunteers help to plant trees 13 The Ribble Estuary

R. Calder

Commission Air/ Alamy Stock Photo

Our journey through the catchment takes us back down the River Calder to Tidal Ribble re-join the River Ribble beyond Whalley. The river swells in size, meandering A grant from United Utilities has had found its way behind the past Ribchester and enabled us to work with farmers revetment and accelerated the rate of Brockholes before passing within the tidal zone and deliver erosion, causing the bank to recede beneath the M6 Motorway interventions that will reduce the by a further 25m. The erosion also amount of pollution entering meant that an excessive amount of and entering the tidal watercourses. Our neighbours to the sediment was entering the river and zone. north, the Wyre Rivers Trust, also affecting water quality, both within received a grant, and together we the river itself and at the coast. Here, concerns shift hope to have a significant impact on Since the hard revetment had failed water quality along the Fylde Coast. towards the significant to stop the erosion, the farmer was impact our rivers have on One farm situated on Savick Brook keen to try a soft engineering the coastal environment, near Longridge opted to fence off the approach. Using a digger, 150m of watercourse to stop livestock from the eroding bank was reprofiled to a not only on marine accessing the brook, preventing direct 40 degree angle and re-turfed, using wildlife, but also the inputs of faecal matter into the water. wooden pegs to keep the turf in place people who enjoy our The resulting buffer zone was planted while it established itself (see photos with 250 native trees, which will help opposite). The angle and smoothness beaches. to reduce the amount of slurry, of the slope helps to dissipate the nutrients and soil being washed off river’s energy so that it has less power Anything entering the the fields and into the brook during to erode the bank as it sweeps over it Ribble at this point, periods of heavy rainfall, to the during high flow events. benefit of both the water whether it’s sewage, The original rock wall was removed environment and the farm business from the channel to allow the river to slurry, pesticides, itself. sediment or litter, will be flow more naturally. These rocks The farm also constructed a roof over were transported to another site transported out to sea, their manure store to help separate within the catchment to be used for with some of it being ‘clean’ and ‘dirty’ water. This reduces the construction of a fish easement washed back onto the volume of dirty liquid being later this year. collected, meaning less time and Finally, the riverbank was planted with beaches by the incoming money spent spreading it on fields 2,600 native trees, including willow and less risk of it polluting the tide. harvested from Grimsargh Wetlands, watercourses. a nearby nature reserve, which is Another farm located on the banks of currently being restored by the main River Ribble at Cuerdale, volunteers. The trees were planted east of Preston, was losing a with the help of Bowland Game significant amount of farmland to Fishing Association and local primary riverbank erosion. A hard rock school children, who had been defence wall had been installed by the involved in the Trust’s ‘Rivers in the farmer years ago, however the water Classroom’ education programme. 14 Before and after: reprofiling a significantly eroding bank of the River Ribble at erdale.Cu What can you do to protect river and marine wildlife? LOVEmyBEACH, our catchment partners, continue to run fantastic awareness campaigns to help people make small alterations to their lifestyles and improve the marine environment. Here are 5 simple Volunteers from Bowland Game Fishing Association help plant trees at Cuerdale. things you can do to help;

1. BIN IT FOR BEACHES Please, please, please don’t drop litter! It finds its way into rivers, gets washed out to sea, harms wildlife and often gets washed back onto beaches, creating an unsightly mess. Keep your litter with you until you find a bin.

2. DOG OWNERS The same goes for dog poo. Bag it and bin it, especially if you’re walking your dog on the beach. Even though the tide washes it away, it’s not ok! The bacteria is harmful to paddlers, swimmers and wildlife.

With match funding from the Heritage Surfers Against Sewage and the 3. SEPTIC TANK OWNERS Lottery Fund, education has been a Preston Birdwatching & Natural significant component of the project. History Society, significant quantities Did you know you should get your Thirteen primary schools within the of litter were removed, reducing the tank checked annually? If you don’t Tidal Ribble area have already taken amount of harmful plastics entering know that it’s full, it could be leaking part in river conservation activities and our oceans and helping to protect into nearby watercourses, polluting more schools are lined up for the marine wildlife. rivers and coastal waters. Visit programme over the coming year. www.callofnature.info for The Tidal Ribble project is set to everything you need to know about Several litter picks have also been complete in March 2018, in which time maintaining a healthy and safe undertaken around the lower reaches we will have worked with 20 different private sewage treatment system. of the River Ribble, included a well- farms to improve water quality, as well attended ‘Cache in, Trash Out’ event, as engaged with schools and members 4. FLUSH ONLY THE 3 P’s during which avid geocachers helped of the public to raise awareness about Blocked sewage systems overflow remove litter whilst indulging in their the importance of healthy rivers. into rivers and the sea and heavily hobby and seeking out new caches in Ongoing monitoring of streams and pollute the water, killing wildlife. It the area. Many hands make light coastal bathing waters will indicate the costs United Utilities £10 million per work, and by partnering with other level of impact the project has had on year to unblock them. Wet wipes are organisations such as LOVEmyBEACH, water quality. the latest culprit. Even if they say on the pack they’re biodegradable, they won’t degrade in the time it takes to travel from your toilet to the sewage treatment works. Only flush the 3 P’s - pee, poo and paper!

5. LOOK AFTER YOUR DRAINS Is your washing machine plumbed into the correct drain? Or is dirty water going into a surface water drain that connects directly to the river? Find out more at www.connectright.org.uk.

Volunteers collect litter from riverbanks near Preston. 15 R. Calder

The final stop on our tour of the Ribble Catchment is Lytham, a charming Lytham seaside town situated beside the Ribble Estuary. The water quality of our Mussel Tank catchment can have a significant impact on marine life such as corals, fish and shellfish. River pollution was extensive in the beauty spot clear of commercial early 20th century. Industry was at its development. The impact was peak and environmental protection featured low on the agenda. As a Seating areas and information boards highlighted during a result, our estuaries and coasts are being developed to educate previous year’s study suffered greatly from poor water visitors about the history of the former when our endeavours to quality. mussel tanks and preserve their heritage. survey smelt numbers In 1934, three mussel tanks were failed to return one fish. constructed on the foreshore at As part of our Ribble Life Together Lytham to wash polluted mussels project, a stone mussel sculpture has Smelt were historically brought in by fishermen from as far as been commissioned to be installed caught in their thousands Morecambe Bay before they were sold within the mussel tank. This piece of daily from the estuary, at market. sensory, tactile art will highlight the historic purpose of the mussel tank The tanks fell into disuse in the 1940s. however their populations and serve to remind the public of how One was transformed into a boating sensitive marine life is to water have failed to recover club, while another accommodated pollution, and why maintaining good from the over-fishing due the RNLI lifeboat station. The third water quality in our rivers, estuaries housed a restaurant and nightclub to pollution and poor and coasts is important. before it burned down in the 1990s, quality habitat. It is a after which the site was paved over by lesson learned therefore the council, creating a public open that we must protect our space.

rivers, not just for riverine Over time, the area deteriorated until species but for the wider in 2010, the Lytham Civic ecosystem. Society embarked on a project to improve the site for public use, whilst keeping the unique

1618 Pupils from Edisford Primary School helped to plant trees in the Skirden Catchment

river simulation table, the children saw, first-hand, the impact that our alteration to the weir will have on their river system. Education OTHER NEWS Our newly signed education trailer means that we can take a mobile, pop The Ribble Life Together project has enabled us to enhance -up classroom on the road to set up at our education programme, which aims to engage primary schools, shows and near river sites. It is really helping to get our interactive, school children in freshwater science. By doing so, we hope hands-on resources directly to that the next generation will develop an appreciation of the schools and communities. We are catchment’s rich natural heritage and inspire in them a delighted with the artwork created by pupils from Sabden Primary School of sense of responsibility towards its protection. local landmarks, which is displayed on the side. 2017 saw 12 new schools take part in wildlife and protection from the Rivers in the Classroom, alongside children. We have also linked schools many schools who keep coming back to other local schools and nurseries to for more year after year. Most of share their passion for local rivers these were in the Preston and further. Longridge areas. Through close interactions with river wildlife, two CREATING WOODLANDS FOR schools undertook river clean-ups of THEIR FUTURES their local brooks to improve the School children and college students Education trailer designed by Sabden Primary habitat and encourage others to enjoy have donned their woolly garments and take good care of their and spades and have been a great In 2017, we had more pupils taking waterways. All the children who took help in planting trees over the winter. part in Rivers in the Classroom than part also discovered how they can Not only will this be fantastic for our ever before. The Ribble Life Together make simple choices to protect their rivers and wildlife, these woodlands project is enabling us to work with rivers from a major polluter of the will also be a special space for the new schools across the catchment. A Ribble and the bathing waters along young people to visit in years to come. secondary school and two colleges our coast: poo! are also enjoying adopting Trout in

BAGS OF HELP the Classroom tanks. The children’s knowledge and interest It was great to be able to share the are filtering further to families and If you are from a school interested in recent changes that the Trust has beyond. At shows, it has been a finding out more about our education made to a weir at Bluebell Wood in delight to meet family members who programme, please get in touch with Burnley. Through river walks and our have caught the enthusiasm for river [email protected]. 17

salmonids to reach new spawning habitat. Fish Surveys The connectivity of a river system is highly important for the lifecycle of diadromous species (those migrating between the sea and freshwater for spawning). The Ribble Trust over the Every summer we survey the populations of fish at over 300 past ten years has re-opened the river sites around the catchment to build a picture of how their to migration and reconnected waterbodies to the Ribble estuary. numbers fluctuate and to help highlight areas of the The re-population of these areas is catchment that are most in need of restoration work. Here reliant on the ecological stability and we report on the findings from summer 2017 - our 10th year quality of habitat. This can be achieved through sustainable river of the survey programme. management and the education of people and industries that affect it. The surveys focus mainly on the the catchment continued to decline. Moreover, the increase in habitat size numbers of salmon and trout fry, as Minimal recruitment was achieved on and complexity through sustainable these are the most indicative of a the Calder with only three individuals restoration schemes will lead to a river’s health. captured and the Hodder continued greater abundance and diversity of its downward trend after 2016’s peak. aquatic species. With the previous season’s During a summer engagement event populations affected by the Boxing The Ribble is host to many fish at Oakenshaw Weir on the River Day floods of 2015, concerns were species that have high conservational Hyndburn, salmon fry were high for 2017’s young as they were interest and habitat importance. By discovered below the structure. This impacted by high spates early on in monitoring these keystone organisms, find was a positive result because the the year. This large volume of water the Trust can continue to direct its newly constructed bypass channel occurred at a critical time when the efforts to improving the catchment’s was opened in October 2017 young had exhausted their yolk water environment for the benefit of connecting the lower reaches of the reserves and were to emerge from people and wildlife. river to the upper, allowing migrating the substrate for their first feed. At Adam Wheeler – Fisheries Officer this early lifecycle stage, swimming ability is poor and so high flow events can lead to mortalities. Results showed that 2017’s brown trout populations had recovered across the catchment from the previous year’s low. Egg to fry survivorship had improved on the Calder catchment with 63% of sites increasing in abundance. The Hodder saw a positive outcome with 35% of sites yielding better results and the main River Ribble remained consistent from 2016’s high. Atlantic salmon saw fry densities above Gisburn improve, with 18% of sites increasing in abundance. However, overall populations across 18 Photo: Rod Calbrade

Game and coarse fishing at several locations around the Ribble Catchment, including the main Ribble and Calder rivers.

The Angling Passport scheme aims to highlight the importance of maintaining a clean and healthy river as a valuable asset to recreation and the local economy. Proceeds from the ticket sales are invested back into the conservation of the Ribble Catchment’s rivers and streams. Catch and release is encouraged on all beats. Buy your tickets online at: www.ribbletrust.org.uk/go-fishing Do you want to help make a difference? Volunteer with us!

Simply email [email protected] and ask to join our volunteer mailing list.

From tree planting, fencing and Himalayan balsam pulling, to litter picks, fish rveyssu and riverfly monitoring, there are many things you can do to help protect youral loc rivers and wildlife. We send out bulletins whenever an opportunity is coming up and if you wish to take part, just reply to the email to let us know. Experience is not required as we provide all the training and tools. You just need to dress appropriately for outdoor work and get stuck in! Membership Form

As a charity, we rely entirely on membership fees, donations and grants to continue the vital conservation of our rivers. If you love nature and would like to make a difference, please join us. Your details Payment method Title Surname Cash or Cheque Forename(s) Payable to ‘Ribble Catchment Conservation Trust’

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Instructions to Bank or Building Society A little extra help Account name: Ribble Catchment Conservation Trust Ltd. Sort Code: 16-29-34, Account Number: 10046013, Address: Royal Boost your donation by 25p of GiftAid for every £1 you Bank of Scotland Plc, The Butts, Rochdale, Lancashire, OL16 1EJ. donate at no extra cost to you! GiftAid is reclaimed by our charity from the tax you pay for the current tax year. Another way to help Yes - I want to GiftAid my donation and any donations I make in the future or have made in the past 4 years. We run many volunteering days throughout the year and are always on the lookout for fresh No - I don’t want to GiftAid it faces! Activities include tree planting, litter picks, Himalayan balsam pulling and wildlife monitoring. Name Experience isn’t necessary and we provide the training and tools. Signature Date If you would like to receive bulletins about I am a UK taxpayer and understand that if I pay less Income Tax and/or upcoming volunteering events, please leave your Capital Gains Tax than the amount of Gift Aid claimed on all my donations email address here; in that tax year it is my responsibility to pay any difference. Please notify us if you wish to cancel the declaration, change your name or address, Email or no longer pay sufficient tax on your income and/or capital gains.

Please return completed membership forms with payment to; Ribble Rivers Trust, c/o Hanson Cement, Ribblesdale Works, Clitheroe, Lancashire, BB7 4QF

Why not join online? Visit www.ribbletrust.org.uk/membership As a charity, we depend on the As a member you will receive: generosity of our members and  Annual newsletter supporters who care about the  Mid-year e-newsletter environment and want to make sure  Water Friendly Homes guide it’s protected for future generations. Become a member of the Ribble  Membership card Rivers Trust today and together we  Member discounts can help make a difference.  Car window sticker Complete and return the membership form overleaf Membership £20 per year