Members of the community are speaking out about their treasured memories of the rivers Wye, Lugg and Usk, and their motivations for joining the legal action to protect their rivers for the next generation.
Justine Evans has many happy memories of splashing around in the River Wye with her young nieces and nephews.
“I first came to the Wye back in the mid-90s, and I have amazing memories of playing in the water, jumping off rocks, and just being out in the environment,” recalls the wildlife filmmaker, who has worked on award-winning BBC Natural History Unit productions such as Planet Earth and Frozen Planet.
“I knew there was quite a lot of pressure on the river, but what I didn’t know was the intensity of poultry farming that was going on.”
She adds: “When I first read about the legal action, I thought, yeah, I’m going to get on board with that.”
Environmental specialist law firm, Leigh Day, is representing thousands of members of the local community in a group action against Avara Foods, Freemans of Newent, Cargill PLC and Welsh Water. Members of the community can sign up if they feel they have lost an important right to access to their rivers and wildlife.
The claim alleges that the rivers Wye, Lugg and Usk have been polluted, and nature has been damaged, causing widespread harm to the people and businesses of the region. The claim will ask the court to order the alleged polluters to clean up the rivers. The claim alleges that the biggest sources of the river pollution are chicken manure from the Herefordshire operations of the multinational company “Cargill/Avara” and sewage from Welsh Water’s operations, because both are high in phosphorus and bacteria.
The rivers Wye, Lugg and Usk have deteriorated significantly in recent years, allegedly impacting local businesses, residents, wildlife and biodiversity.
Justine is one of thousands of people who have signed up to the claim.
“I have memories of seeing the river when it was much healthier, and it was so much clearer,” she says. “Now it’s a dark chocolate brown. And you can feel the slime.”
“All the rocks are slimy - you just wouldn’t have had rocks like this; they’d be clear and polished because of the water flowing over them. But it’s the amount of algae growth that’s going on in this river.”
In 2013, it is reported that around 13 million chickens were reared in the Wye catchment. Fast forward 10 years, and that has nearly doubled to 24 million, explains Leigh Day partner Oliver Holland.
“Phosphorus-rich manure from the chickens is applied on land as a fertiliser, and it leaches through the soil and goes into the river itself,” he explains.
“It is estimated that around 90 per cent of that phosphorus ends up in the River Wye. We believe this causes huge amounts of algae growth in the water, which blocks out the sunlight and removes oxygen from the water, feeding growths of bacteria that make it dangerous to swim and fish.”
Dr Sasha Norris, director of Herefordshire Wildlife Rescue, says the River Wye’s situation is an “enormous problem.”
She explains: “There are around 32,000 mute swans in the whole of the UK, maybe two million crows, 250,000 foxes.”
“So, 23 million chickens in just one area of the country means a massive input of manure into the soil. The scale is just unprecedented in ecology.”
“The river itself is a delicate ecological system and if you mess around with the nutrients going into the water, it causes a complete, cascading destruction of that ecosystem.”
What is happening around the Wye is far from traditional farming, points out Dr Norris.
“This is not traditional agriculture, nor is it something that’s been going on for years, and we’ve only just noticed it,” she explains.
“Ecology is capable of restoring itself and renewing, but we do need to act to protect nature and actually make that happen.”
Nathan Jubb, a fly-fishing guide on the River Wye, has worked on the river for more than 40 years. Now, he is cancelling trips and says he is losing “thousands of pounds”.
“It’s got progressively worse,” he explains. “We saw the maps of the poultry units start growing and the more chicken sheds that appeared, the worst the algae blooms got.”
Speaking about his business, he went on to say “It’s just killed it. We are losing thousands of pounds.”
The rivers are about more than his business, Nathan adds.
“It’s hard to explain – it’s deep in your heart,” he says. “It’s the memories you make as you go along, friends you meet, days you remember, and it’s kept me happy throughout my life. Until now.”
He adds: “If it goes to court and somebody is made culpable then I think this would be the start of something great for the river.
“We’ve got to get everybody on board, it’s the only way we’re going to stop it.”
Justine Evans agrees, adding that the legal action is the chance to do “something powerful and direct”.
“This is something that could really make a difference,” she says. “It’s all of our rights to be able to enjoy this place. We do have power - all you have to do is sign up, and join in.”
Members of the community can sign up to join the claim online. As long as they keep to the terms of their sign-up agreement:
- There are no upfront fees to join the legal action, Leigh Day’s work will be paid for out of damages/costs from the defendants if the people who sign up win the claim.
- Leigh Day has taken out insurance to protect against adverse costs, if the claim is lost.
To join the claim or find out more about the environmental impact of the pollution and the group legal action, visit www.leighday.co.uk/riverwyeclaim.