The Chalk Stream Restoration Group Annual Review for 2024/25 has found that while many communities and organisations passionate about England’s chalk streams are making strides in their restoration, there is still a long way to go.
This is in part due to chalk steams not being granted much-needed protections by the government despite calls from the public, environmental charities and angling groups. By showing the positive work carried out by communities throughout the country, we hope to inspire our leaders and politicians to grant our ‘One Big Wish for Chalk streams’ to drive action and future investment to return them all to good health.
England is custodian of 85% of the world’s chalk streams and arguably we have a global responsibility to protect what David Attenborough described as “one of the rarest habitats on Earth”. Chalk streams are at the heart of many communities and have shaped our history and culture. Under pressure from human actions, they are now more vulnerable than ever. The recent hot and dry weather has seen some chalk streams heat up and some have even dried up. Action is needed now to protect our chalk streams and make them more resilient to future changes.
While the government has now confirmed that it has dropped the recovery plan for chalk streams, there are a number of actions they could take in the short term to ensure their actions meet their rhetoric when it comes to delivering a win-win for growth and nature. Their first opportunity to show their commitment is through the Planning and Infrastructure Bill currently in parliament. Accepting the amendments tabled in the House of Lords to strengthen protections for chalk streams would be a useful first step in ensuring their protection and creating an environment that will allow greater investment in their restoration.
Ali Morse, chair of the CaBA Chalk Stream Restoration Group, said, “Our annual report charts a huge amount of action from community groups, water companies, regulators and others but the impact of all this work could be far greater if delivered under a framework of ambitious targets and legal protections for chalk streams. This means that Government has a pivotal role to play here too - after putting the chalk stream recovery pack on ice, it should instead use the plethora of legal and other changes around water that are coming down the track, to demonstrate that it really is prepared to act to protect chalk streams.”
With the government having commissioned both the Independent Water Commission (Cunliffe Review) and the Corry Review on Defra’s regulatory landscape it has the opportunity to bring forward recommendations that will support action to protect and improve chalk streams. This should include measures to shape long term strategic plans for water resources and water quality, secure long-term and increased funding for catchment partnerships, better support for citizen science, and regulatory changes to enable more innovation including the removal of barriers that prevent practical action to improve our chalk streams.
Transparency is also needed when it comes to planned water company investment. The commencement, between 2020 –25, of phosphate stripping at 69 wastewater treatment works flowing into chalk streams is welcome, but with record levels of investment expected from water companies up to 2030 there is a need for them to set out a clear plan as to how this will benefit chalk streams, to deliver on their investment and to demonstrate improvements.
Alison Matthews, Chalk Stream Strategy Programme Manager, said, “This progress report shows what is possible. So many communities work tirelessly to improve these precious rivers and with the right support from government, the pace of improvement for our chalk streams can accelerate. Protecting chalk streams is a team effort requiring everyone to play their part.”