Water in the Dales: are we keeping up with climate change?
Rick Battarbee
Addingham Environment Group University College London
FoTD, A Green New Dales, 17th October + 1.5O C spells danger Summer mean temperature, 2080s, medium scenario Winter mean precipitation, 2080s, medium scenario Extreme rainfall events will become more intense and more frequent
The most intense precipitation events observed today are likely to almost double in occurrence for each degree of further global warming
Myhre et al. 2019 Scientific Reports Extreme rainfall events have already become more intense and more frequent
It’s becoming wetter and rainfall is more intense both in summer and winter The amount of rain from extremely wet days (> 1 mm) has increased by 17% over the last 30 years Effects of an increase in storm frequency and intensity are both direct and indirect
Direct effects include:
• flooding impact on society (livelihoods, destruction of infrastructure) • damage to wildlife and wildlife habitats
Indirect effects include:
• accelerated soil erosion and sediment pollution • increased nutrient pollution; and • increased faecal bacteria contamination December 26th 2015 Airedale
Images from the Craven Herald 30th July 2019, Swaledale
Picture: Guy Carpenter Storm Ciara 10th Feb, 2020 Wensleydale Cogden Gill (?), Grinton 30th July 2019 Properties at risk in the Ouse catchment (2009)
https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/289228/River_Ouse_Catchment_Flood_Management_Plan.pdf York under water
http://dringhousesandwoodthorpeward.mycouncillor.org.uk/category/flooding/ Problems for wildlife and wildlife habitat through e.g. channel erosion, loss of redds and young of year trout
Pictures: Jon Grey Eastburn Beck (Aire)
• Electric fishing data
• Trout size frequency histogram, 2018-2020 data showing lack of young of year in both 2019 & 2020
• Possibly due to storms Gareth (Mar19) & Dennis (Feb20) causing flooding at worst possible time
• Ova were hatching into swim up fry, the most vulnerable life-stage
Jon Grey (pers. comm) And stormflows accelerate the spread of invasive species along watercourses
Himalayan balsam Giant hogweed Hard engineering solutions: Waller Hill Beck, Skipton
Craven Herald/Shoreside Aerial Or slowing the flow using Natural Flood Management (NFM)
Hedge planting
Grip blocking
Leaky dams Opportunities for habitat restoration/creation and wildlife protection? NFM: Tree planting and a detention bund, Swarthghyll
Dan Turner YDRT NFM: Leaky dams, Swarthghyll
Dan Turner, YDRT NFM: riparian buffer strip, Swarthghyll
Dan Turner, YDRT NFM: wetland scrape, Bishopdale
Jack Hirst, YDRT Slowing the flow in urban areas using SuDS An Addingham rain garden
Rain from roof
Water butt
Pond Bog Soakaway Storms also cause soil erosion that leads to sediment pollution of rivers and degradation of freshwater habitats
Middle Marchup Top soil, fertilisers and manure are washed into lakes and rivers causing eutrophication
Jonathan White Malham Tarn has suffered from eutrophication for a long time
Picture: Suzanne McGowan Phosphorus is washed into the Tarn through inflowing becks Causes excessive algal growth in summer
Increased nutrient loading in winter and higher summer temperatures will lead to further increases in algal growth and offset efforts to restore the Tarn to favourable status Riparian buffer strips can protect watercourses from soil erosion and nutrient pollution And Sewage Treatment Works can become overloaded leading to frequent spills
Ashlands Sewage Treatment Works: Ilkley In wet weather sewage from Ilkley spills untreated into the Wharfe at Ashlands
There were 136 spills in 77 days in 2019 Karen Shackleton Causing severe local organic pollution, nutrient pollution and contamination by faecal bacteria
Steve Fairbourn, 23rd March 2016 Faecal bacteria sampling: citizen science style Concentrations of faecal bacteria in the Wharfe at Ilkley
Bolton Bridge to Ilkley: E. coli (cfu/100 ml) during high flow and a spill (7th October 2019) Main River Bolton Bridge 700 Farfield (up) Farfield (down) Suspension Bridge 700 Low Mill Weir Old Ilkley Road Old Bridge 700 Above Iron Bridge Below storm overflow Beanlands island Denton Bridge
400
600 3 240,000 47,000 1 = storm overflow (Ashlands) 2 = treated outfall (Ashlands) 2,000 1 2 3 = storm overflow (Addingham) 2,700 2,200 6,500 Faecal bacteria also come from livestock
O’Callagahan et al. 2018 EPA Report
We need to know where the faecal bacteria in the river come from: people or livestock or both Ilkley Clean River Group, Yorkshire Dales Rivers Trust, Addingham Environment Group
“Improving water quality on the River Wharfe from Oughtershaw to the Ouse: a citizen science project”
The River Wharfe Big Health Check
Monday 24th August, 2020
Five teams sampling at 60 sites along the river for E. coli contamination and nutrient pollution on the same day Faecal bacteria concentrations at 50 sites along the Wharfe from Swarthghyll to Cawood Mainly reflects outfalls from STWs but agricultural sources are also important
STWs? STWs? STW! Livestock?
Diagram: Malcolm Secrett Needs investment in sewage treatment facilities to reduce spills of untreated effluent, to disinfect treated effluents and to strip nutrient phosphorus
Alamy web picture And better land management by farmers, especially the creation of riparian buffer zones
Jon Grey Are we keeping up with climate change?
No!
We need:
More NFM More SuDS Better sewage treatment facilities Improved land management Continuous riparian buffer zones