Gloucestershire's River Wye downgraded amid 'pea soup' of pollution from chicken farms
Natural England has downgraded the official status of the River Wye to "unfavourable-declining", after fewer aquatic animals and plants were recorded.
The river, which flows for 155 miles from mid-Wales to the Severn Estuary, has seen record declines of Atlantic salmon and white-clawed crayfish.
The new assessment covers the River Wye in England. When it was last assessed in 2010, only one of the seven English units was rated as "favourable" for wildlife.
The remainder were "unfavourable-recovering", and the Wildlife Trusts along the Wye said they had expected its condition to improve over time - not worsen.
Yet Natural England's most recent assessment found that all seven units of the Wye, as well as all four units of its tributary the River Lugg, are unfavourable-declining.
A 'pea soup' of pollution
In a statement on their website, the Wildlife Trusts said the Wye had become a "pea soup" of farm pollution, causing algae to bloom and use up the oxygen vital to aquatic animals and plants.
They added that the water quality targets were failed on the Lugg and that phosphate was close to its limits at some monitoring points.
"In recent months, concerns about nutrient pollution from intensive chicken units, livestock farming and from sewage have escalated on both sides of the Welsh-English border," the trusts said.
They added that there was an "extremely high" number of chickens in the River Wye catchment area, potentially 24 million, and the first algal blooms of the year were "already appearing".
"The new assessment means that without urgent help and appropriate management the river will never reach a favourable or recovering condition," the trusts said.
All The Wildlife Trusts along the route of the River Wye are calling for:
The English and Welsh Governments to halt any new or extended livestock production units in the Wye catchment.
Natural Resources Wales, the Environment Agency and local authorities to publish all the water quality data and manure management information they hold – and then step up to enforce the law.
Regulators, supermarkets and farmers to work with local stakeholders and Wildlife Trusts to create a shared vision for halting farm pollution in the River Wye catchment, with clear goals for a healthy river where nature is restored.
Joan Edwards, director of public affairs at The Wildlife Trusts, said: “That the Wye is in even worse condition now will come as no surprise to the people that love and live near it.
"But this new admission represents a shocking failure by the agencies and authorities in Wales and England that are supposed to protect this once beautiful river.
"Wider research shows that farm pollution is the main cause of its decline – that’s why the authorities must enforce the law wherever the causes of pollution are clear.
"It’s time to prevent more chicken sheds from being built and ensure that all farmers are rewarded for nature-friendly, cleaner food production methods.”
"If the condition of a designated site has declined, Natural England can help the landowner to take action, advising or requiring that certain management activities are carried out to improve the site’s status.
"But in the case of a river, many of the pressures are not within a river owner’s control – for example, pollution can come from anywhere in the catchment, so the ability to work only with the site owners is not sufficient to protect the river from harm.
Jamie Audsley, chief executive of Herefordshire Wildlife Trust, said: "Current approaches have failed to keep the River Wye in a healthy condition.
"What we now need to see is a cross government plan to bring the Wye back into a favourable condition.
"The Wye should be a river where salmon and otters thrive and people can safely swim.
"The plan will need to involve Governments, regulators, farm businesses and others, and ensure a consistent approach across England and Wales.
”The Wildlife Trusts are convening a Wye Catchment roundtable to ensure tangible action on 17 July.
"Regulators and decision makers from both England and Wales will meet to discuss improving the health of the Wye."
Environment Agency 'tackling' phosphate levels
The Environment Agency released a statement after news broke that the River Wye had been downgraded.
A spokesman said: "The River Wye is a beautiful and important part of our landscape, natural resources and community wellbeing.
"That is why we are working with partners to implement solutions to tackle phosphate levels.
"This includes offering advice to farmers on measures to reduce the impact of their activities, increased monitoring of the benefits of these measures, and research to better understand how the phosphate already in the soil is lost to the river.
"All alongside increasing our regulatory farm visits. We do accept though that more is needed.
"Just this week, the Environment Secretary held a roundtable with the Environment Agency, Natural England, local farmers, environment groups and others to discuss future actions and innovations to restore the River Wye."
Environment Secretary making the Wye a 'priority'
Thérèse Coffey, Environment Secretary, met local farmers, councillors, environmental groups, MPs and the Welsh Government in Hereford yesterday (Tuesday 30 May) to discuss the state of the River Wye.
She said restoring it was a "priority" and that as part of the government’s Plan for Water and farming schemes, support is available to farmers in the River Wye catchment.
This includes more than doubling the money for slurry infrastructure for farmers and enabling more than 4,000 farm inspections across England.
Want a quick and expert briefing on the biggest news stories? Listen to our latest podcasts to find out What You Need To Know…