Pembrokeshire Rivers Trust Report on activities carried out for Adopt-a-riverbank initiative Funded by Dulverton Trust, (Community Foundation in Wales) 23.10.15 to 1.11.16 3 December 2016 Page 1 of 15 Adopt-A-Riverbank Project 2015/16 The Adopt-A-Riverbank project aimed to get as many people as possible engaged in visiting and monitoring their local riverbank. The project was conceived as an initiative to develop and broaden the activities of Pembrokeshire Rivers Trust, building on projects that the Trust has been involved in over the last few years, such as The Cleddau Trail project, the European Fisheries Fund (EFF) project and the Coed Cymru Nature Fund river restoration project. Plans and funding bids were put together during the Summer of 2015 during the last months of the EFF project in order to create a role and bid for funding that would provide ongoing work for the EFF project staff. In July 2015 PRT applied to the Dulverton Trust (Community Fund in Wales) and also to a number of other funding streams including the Natural Resources Wales, Woodward Trust, Milford Haven Port Authority, Supermarkets 5p bag schemes and other local organisations. The aim was to fund a £40K 2 year project with ambitious targets for numbers of people reached and kilometres of riverbank adopted, and to create a sustainable framework for co-ordination and engagement of PRT’s volunteers. PRT was only successful with one of its funding applications; unfortunately no other funding was secured. The Dulverton Trust (Community Foundation in Wales) kindly awarded PRT £5,000. This money was used to employ two project officers on a part-time basis to run the Adopt-A- riverbank project. Despite the failure to secure more funding, the £5,000 grant from the Dulverton Trust did enable the Trust to achieve its aims of engaging more people and getting them involved with riverbank activities, with the key achievements as follows: 4 Community riverbank events 3 School events County show displays Social media training course for volunteers Creation of social media feeds including dedicated Facebook page and Flikr/Instagram Presentation to Schools Foundation officers to offer ADAR programme (taking place on 1.11.16) Presentation to local Community Council to establish riverbank group Plus a number of other visits and meetings. Project spending The £5,000 Dulverton grant was used to cover the following costs of the Adopt-a-riverbank project. Part-time project officer funding including £302.20 expenses (Jo Cunningham) = £2,552.20 Part-time project officer funding including £97.75 expenses (Helen Jobson) = £2,347.75 Cost of exhibition space at Pembrokeshire County Show = £100 Total = £4,999.95 3 December 2016 Page 2 of 15 How The Grant Has Made A Difference To The Local People And Local Area The project has increased interest and knowledge of river/water issues in Pembrokeshire, with more coverage and awareness of the Trust, its aims and its activities. A key aspect of the project has been engaging with primary schools in the County, with a presentation to Foundation Stage Co-ordinators and 3 school sessions held during the Summer months. In these school sessions children have been encouraged to bring their families back to the publicly accessible watercourses, thus taking their learning home to parents and siblings. Contacts have been made at other schools that will help to develop school involvement in their local riverbank activities in the future, with Adopt-a-riverbank activity sheets, maps, handouts and other project resources that can be reused for other classes and schools. More invasive species initiatives are now underway as a result of the project, with more people now aware of the issues facing rivers from Himalayan Balsam and Japanese Knotweed infestations. With more stretches of watercourses now adopted, this has not only benefited the adopters but also helped to increase scrutiny of water quality issues, providing information on how to tackle problems and where to find more information/help. For example, how to recognise invasive weeds, what to do and not to do and where to report water pollution issues. More local people now have the opportunity to learn about and engage with riverbank activities via the social media focus, with a growing following and sharing of online information. This has also helped in terms of wildlife reporting with reporting of records on the West Wales Biodiversity Information Centre (WWBIC) database, PRT web site and Riverfly Partnership database. A Radio Pembrokeshire feature in May helped to highlight the project’s launch event and plans. As a result of the project information at the Pembrokeshire County Show, a local magazine “Pembrokeshire Life Online” has offered to run an article about the Trust in their next issue free of charge. As a result of the Community council meeting a write-up of the project’s aims is being submitted to the local newspaper. Social media links Twitter @PembsRT Instagram pembsrt Like us on www.facebook.com/PembsRTAdoptariverbank1 Photos on www.flikr.com/photos/pembrokeshire-rivers-trust www.youtube.com/channel/UCa3U3g9K4uXv0JowgwN4eUg 3 December 2016 Page 3 of 15 Events held as part of the project A social media training course was held at the end of October 2015 to help volunteers to use social media feeds for communicating Trust activities. 9 volunteers attended the course, which was provided free of charge to Pembrokeshire Rivers Trust by Refreshing North Pembrokeshire. A launch event was held on 30 April 2016 at Treffgarne Angling Centre for the Adopt-a- riverbank project. As well as displays and information about how to get involved in the project, the event featured moth trapping by Robin Taylor our county moth recorder, a display about beavers by the Wildlife Trusts beaver project, riverbank activities including a treasure hunt and wildlife recording. See PRT web site for more information about the event at www.pembsrt.org/welshbeaverproject/ 30th April launch event featuring the Wildlife Trust’s display 28.5.16 the Milford Haven based Value Independence Saturday Club met at Little Newcastle for an Adopt-a-riverbank session on the Glanrhyd stream, a tributary of the Anghof river in the Western Cleddau catchment where the Saturday Club often meets for outdoor activities. The weather was fantastic for the invertebrate sampling and nature walk. As well as looking for riverflies, invasive species and litter/river pollution problems, the Club saw a range of birds, wildlife and riverbank plants such as Hedge Woundwort, Wild Garlic (Ramsoms) and Bluebells, together with ubiquitous Nettles and Brambles which made the nature walk quite memorable! 3 December 2016 Page 4 of 15 Value Independence Saturday Club at Little Newcastle 8.6.16 A meeting was held with the Darwin Foundation which works closely with schools and other organisation throughout Pembrokeshire to provide educational activities focused on outdoor coastal habitats. Darwin’s and Pembrokeshire Rivers Trust’s aims align very closely and it was agreed to work together to create mutually supportive collaboration such as references for the Trust to join with the Pembrokeshire Outdoor Schools organisation, and exchange of water quality sampling results. 29.6.16 As part of Pembrokeshire Fish Week Pembrokeshire Rivers Trust were invited to join Pembrokeshire Angling Association's Learn to Fish school event at Treffgarne Angling Cabin. Children from two local schools attended the event and learned about river wildlife, including invertebrates and their water life cycles. School children on a learn-to-fish event as part of Pembrokeshire Fish week 9.7.16 & 8.10.16 Members of Pembroke Mill Ponds Action Group (PMAG) received information about the Adopt-a-riverbank activities, with a display of river invertebrates, kick sampling demonstration and discussion of pollution issues. “Hello A big thank you to everyone who came along today and made the Work Party so enjoyable and successful. I think Jo from Pembrokeshire Rivers Trust (PRT) deserves a special mention with her excellent demonstration of the invertebrates she found in the river and her knowledge, enabling her to answer all the questions that we fired at her. I believe that the interest shown by PMAG Volunteers is very encouraging, and we look forward to receiving 3 December 2016 Page 5 of 15 training in techniques and identification from PRT early next year. I have attached the results of the Mill Pond water sampling and the birds observed. Although there wasn’t a great variety of birds, black-headed gulls being the most numerous, a number of people reported seeing a kingfisher daily and watching otters during the daytime. For those people who were wondering about the plant Miles (Peter) found alongside the reedbed boardwalk, we have identified it as Bittersweet (Solanum dulcamara), part of the Nightshade family. Don’t forget that the next PMAG event will be an afternoon walk in Holyland Wood on Saturday 22nd October starting at 2.30pm, followed by refreshments and cakes at The Hope Inn. In the morning, you can go to Foundry House to celebrate Apple Day. I look forward to seeing some of you then. Best wishes John Crum” Pembroke Millponds Action Group at one of feeder streams, Holyland Woodland On the 12th July children from Years 3&4 took part in the Adopt-a-riverbank project with an interactive classroom session followed by a nature walk along the banks of the river Nevern in Newport. Equipped with clipboards, wellies and a picnic lunch the walk involved seeing, hearing and drawing the many plants and creatures found along the river and estuary. The children mapped the route of the walk and discovered many items of litter along the way, learning about the importance of preventing litter and pollution in order to protect their adopted riverbank.