User:Yadsalohcin/Wye-kipedia

This page forms an Index of topics related to the River Wye.

From the main page on Wikipedia (as at 12 February 2023):

The River Wye (Afon Gwy ) is the fourth-longest river in the UK, stretching some 250 km from its source on Plynlimon in mid Wales to the Severn estuary. For much of its length the river forms part of the border between England and Wales. The Wye Valley (lower part) is designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The Wye is important for nature conservation and recreation, but is severely affected by pollution.

...

Along with many other rivers the Wye is being heavily polluted by manure from the many million free range chickens for eggs and meat in intensive poultry units (IPUs) in Powys and Herefordshire, contaminating the Wye's tributaries. As of April 2020, there were over 110 registered IPUs in Powys, each with over 40,000 birds (smaller IPUs need not be registered).

...

In addition, runoff from dairy farms, farm slurry and silage liquor are entering the Wye. A study by the Welsh Government found that only 1% of farm slurry stores in Wales met regulations and that farms were purposely spreading slurry on fields before high rainfall, leading to increased run off into waterways. An investigation by Greenpeace found that Environment Agency staff cuts from austerity had reduced pollution inspections by up to one third. An internal report by the Environment Agency showed that the use of a “voluntary approach” by government was leading to increased levels of river pollution across the UK. Powys County Council approved the construction of 20 new free-range chicken sheds in 2019 and as of February 2022 continues to license new chicken farms. In addition to problems with the riverine environment, this is causing air quality issues. Pollution from the chicken factory farms is estimated to have killed 90% to 97% of the river’s water crowfoot beds, and 3,000 tonnes more phosphate than plants can absorb is released in the River Wye's catchment every year.

UK
Other salmon rivers in England are listed here. Scotland has the River Tweed, (also a cross-border catchment, see also River Tweed Commission ) (Scots) Dee, River Spey, River Tay etc. Wales has 23 main salmon rivers.

Longest rivers of the United Kingdom
 * 1) Severn 220
 * 2) Thames 215
 * 3) Trent 185
 * 4) Wye 155 NB mixed Catchment 4,136 km2 (1,597 sq mi)
 * 5) Great Ouse 143
 * 6) Ure/Ouse 129
 * 7) Tay 117 NB substantial remote Catchment 4,970 km2 (1,920 sq mi)
 * 8) Spey 109
 * 9) Clyde 107 NB substantial mixed urban and rural Catchment 4,000 km2 (1,500 sq mi)
 * 10) Nene 100
 * 11) River Bann 99
 * 12) Tweed 96 NB substantial remote Catchment 5,000 km2 (1,930 sq mi)
 * 13)  (Warwicks) Avon 96
 * 14) (Cumbria) Eden 90
 * 15) (Scots) Dee 87

cf. also River Dee, Wales 70 Catchment area 1,816.8 km2 (701.5 sq mi)

Abroad

 * Chesapeake Bay (has also suffered from nutrient overload and eutrophication)
 * Helpe Mineure, cf. Helpe Mineure (Subject of a major restoration project by Clean-Flo/ SIS Bio in the 1990s)
 * Illinois River (Oklahoma) "In the early 2000s, the Illinois River had high levels of pollution due largely to water runoff contaminated by chicken manure. ..." An environmental restoration group was formed, "STIR", or "Save The Illinois River, Inc.; Oklahoma"
 * Ohio River "The Ohio River Valley Water Sanitation Commission... found that 92% of toxic discharges were nitrates, including farm runoff..." tho' it would seem that the bulk of the Ohio River's pollution is industrial in origin, including a lot of PFOA.
 * Whanganui River has its own legal identity, with the rights, duties and liabilities of a legal person.

Other UK waterbodies

 * Poole Harbour (has also suffered from nutrient overload)

Geological aspects
Geological aspects of the Wye

Geophysics
See, e.g. The River Restoration Centre, Cranfield University - which offers training courses in Citizen Science geophysical observation and maintains a Manual of river restoration techniques. See also Hyporheic zone. For Geological Maps at British Geological Survey.

Chemistry
River water chemistry in general (what's good, what substances people test for etc) - see Analysis of water chemistry, Water pollution.

Marinet (marinet.org.uk) have articulated concerns re PFOS and PBDEs, used in flame retardants and Firefighting foams. These are both bio-accumulative Persistent organic pollutants which persist in the environment. PFOS thermally decomposes at ~600C and PBDEs thermally decompose at ~800C meaning that they will easily survive passage through an anaerobic digestor.

Detergents and pesticides are also of concern.

Biology
See sections below,, , , , , ,

Farming
On the main Wikipedia

More specifically riverine environment e.g in Wye catchment Farming. Ref (for elsewhere?)


 * The book, Sixty Harvests Left, makes the case that factory farming is as big a threat to humanity as climate change. Philip Lymbery explains climate, nature and health emergencies humankind faces. He presents solutions which have the regenerative, nature-positive farming focus on soil and the interconnectedness of all life on our planet. Further resources via this reference.


 * See also book Tom Philpott, "Perilous Bounty" re shortcomings of agriculture in the USA, in particular California & availability and cost of water (from snow melt and from aquifer) and labor... and in the Midwest, grain belt, the problem of physical loss of soil and the degradation of nutrients.

Also books:
 * Dr Dickson Despommier, The vertical farm, Feeding the world in the 21st century - proposing "...EVERY CITY HAS ITS OWN LOCAL FOOD SOURCE grown in the safest way possible, where no drop of water or particle of light is wasted".
 * Vernon Gill Carter and Tom Dale TOPSOIL & CIVILIZATION REVISED EDITION ISBN 0-8061-1107-0 OKLAHOMA
 * John Seymour and Herbert Girardet FAR FROM PARADISE The story of human impact on the environment "... the problems that have precipitated a crisis of survival in the Third World: deforestation, soil erosion, and desert encroachment. And they highlight the way our high-tech agriculture is now pointing us in a similar direction. ...we should be adopting ways of using the land which are biologically sound, and which could sustain us all indefinitely. Such techniques already exist, and many have been in use for thousands of years."ISBN 1-85425-038-8
 * F.H.King Farmers of FORTY CENTURIES - Permanent Agriculture in China, Korea, and Japan "...journey of an extraordinary man who traveled to Asia to uncover the secrets of the ancient farming methods that have been used to feed millions of people for more than 40 centuries." "Dr. King, former chief of the Soil Division of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, went to Asia in the early 1900s to find out how farmers in China, Korea, and Japan could farm the same fields for 40,000 years without destroying their fertility and without applying artificial fertilizer." ISBN 0-87857-867-6 Information on: ■ composting ■ crop rotation ■ green manuring ■ intertillage ■ irrigation ■ drought-resistant crops

Sustainable farming
Regenerative agriculture, see also Natural farming

There is an increasing amount of information about Sustainable farming, e.g. whiteoakpastures.com, Bluffton, Georgia and a 'soil farmer of the year' based in Herefordshire and many other local examples of financially viable agroecological practice. Ben Taylor-Davies/ 'Regen Ben' See also farming tag on the food alliance blog, and some case studies on zero carbon Herefordshire site.

Use and abuse of fertiliser
Plant growth requires (in addition to carbon, sunlight and other commonly available resources) in particular Nitrogen, Phosphorus and Potassium (hence reference to 'NPK' in regard to fertiliser). The Wye catchment is more than adequately supplied with all of these, but phosphorus (typically as phosphate) tends to have a dominant effect on the ecosystem, with excess legacy phosphate being further worsened by excessive addition, resulting in phosphate-rich run-off from the soil- see RePhoKUs phosphate study by Lancaster University and soil phosphate study by WSA...

Manure (all origins) (see e.g. DEFRA table of contributions by different species (see also, e.g. AHDB source of info ) and Nitrogen calculator and estimates for England and Wales GIS data )

Some Farms have made changes supported by Wye Valley AONB.

Various sources of information re soil condition, incl and application e.g.

Treatment of manure

Fertilizer

Dr Paul Withers on Phosphate (presentation to the Wye Catchment Partnership, via Farm Herefordshire)

The NFU & EA published a booklet in ~2009

Chemical phosphorus recovery from animal manure and digestate experiments and pilot at Wageningen.

See also University of Georgia paper on poultry manure.

Compost-or-phosphorus-fertiliser-in-africa-agriculture The 'miracle mineral' the world needs - BBC Future

Agro-industrial approaches
Recent decades have seen a proliferation of IPUs in the catchment. Source Apportionment modelling attributes the majority of the phosphate load to (industrial) 'agricultural sources'.

IPUs produce a lot of waste, rich in nutrients unwanted in the Wye catchment. These wastes may be treated, broadly, along one of two approaches:


 * 1) 'Biomass' approaches (see also pyrolisis, and the  section below)
 * 2) Digesters, various, see Aerobic digestion, Anaerobic digestion etc. See  section below and also Leachate

Summary available from the Chesapeake report

AD systems: Cons
 * "Systems are typically not cost-effective for smaller operations (under 400 cows) because the process requires a relatively large area for manure containment and can be very expensive.
 * "Although nutrients are concentrated, most are retained in a sludge by-product that — unless an advanced separation method is used — is not cost-effective to transport long distances.
 * "Without advanced separation, the nutrient-rich liquid by-product must be stored and managed as a wet nutrient source to be used as crop fertilizer on nearby fields."

Biomass incinerators
See for example companies involved. There are concerns re effects on air quality: various techniques exist to mitigate this- 'burning' is far from simple in order to provide assurance of minimal (ideally no) noxious substances in the exhaust. Control of the combustion process (e.g. dry enough fuel fed in at the right rate) is fundamental; 'air scrubbers' may be provided in the exhaust.

Biomass heating system
A Biomass heating system can be used to generate heat from biomass, for example in a combined heating and power application- e.g. Whittern Farm. -In the winter, this can be used to heat the poultry sheds; when they are warm enough the heat can used in other ways, e.g. for grain drying etc. The residue is effectively ash, typically ~7.5% of the mass input, very concentrated in P which is much more easily transported in this format (hazardous waste when 'wet' requires more precautions etc).

Residues: BioChar
Biomass systems can be designed to produce Biochar. Biochar can be produced either by traditional techniques (cf Charcoal burning) or by modern biomass pyrolysis processes, and would appear to have multiple potential uses. These include not only for spreading as a concentrated fertiliser but also for various forms of building material (replacing sand in mortar, as an additive to clay plaster mixes, etc.). Attention must however be given to mitigating potential air pollution in the form of carbon monoxide, NOx (nitrogen oxides), VOCs (volatile organic compounds), particulates and other pollutants. The biochar approach releases less carbon into the environment and the biochar may be a better substance for controlled/ progressive release of nutrients as a fertiliser.

Anaerobic digesters
In 2018, a world 'first' was claimed for an AD plant in Ballymena running exclusively off Poultry Litter.

"As of 11th April 2022, the UK currently counts 660 operational facilities..."

Commentary from Richard Fleming.

New AD for food waste approved in Darwen (February 2023).

Digesters in Powys

Welsh Assembly funding boost for anaerobic digestion plants: the Materials Action Programme/ Bank Farm in Powys

Brecon Beacons green energy plant goes ahead after planning row

anaerobic digestion plant and all associated works Ystym Colwyn Meifod Powys

How An anaerobic digester (AD) works

High Court refusal of a renewed application for permission for a judicial review of Powys CC permission for expanded IPU etc.

Digesters in Herefordshire

Pembridge, Herefordshire, has been running an anaerobic digester since 2014.

Whitwick Manor AD planning application, 2022.

Elsewhere

Whitchurch, Shrops:

Netherlands- cutting-edge advanced AD with specific nutrient recovery for use as fertilizer etc.

Other digesters

See protest groups: 'Muck off Acorn' (Haverhill, Suffolk), 'Swinford Biogas Concern Group' (County Mayo, Ireland?), 'stop hardwick energy' (Cotswolds/ Stratford on Avon). Stop Witney Digester quoted the NFU Scotland's concerns about distortion to the agro economic landscape from setting up large ADs. Gort (South Galway) has a group fighting plans for a new AD etc.

Aerobic digesters
Aerobic digestion is a process originally used for sewage treatment designed to reduce the volume of sewage sludge and make it suitable for subsequent use; more recently, technology has been developed that allows the treatment and reduction of other organic waste, such as food, cardboard and horticultural waste.

Residues from digesters
Unlike the Biomass approach which results in residue in the form of a dry ash, the output from digesters ('Digestate') is typically of a moist nature, sometimes sludge or slurry, and sometimes with a separate liquid output in addition. While the Netherlands groenemineralen approach involves significant downstream technology (Reverse osmosis etc.), simpler approaches involving reed beds etc. seem likely to result in little if any reduction in the total mass of product to be disposed of.

Regulation
See 'Call for better regulation in Wales'

Incidents involving digesters
Wye catchment incidents in bold.

Anaerobic digesters have caused (or been strongly suspected of) Fish kills (e.g. River Mole, Devon, River Teifi, Afon Llynfi, and loss of human life (e.g. Avonmouth explosion)

Records of six AD explosions in the US (Jay, Maine Pixelle Specialty Solutions’ Androscoggin Mill (see also apnews.com); Pensacola 22 January 2017 (Kamyr digester explosion) (see also www.northescambia.com); EPDM failure March 2013 Aumsville, Ore.; February 6, 1987, two workers at a wastewater treatment plant were re-draining a sewage digester when an explosion lifted the 30-ton floating cover, killing both workers instantly; Southwest Wastewater Treatment Plant in Springfield, MO), two in the UK (Avonmouth and Harper Adams, Newport, Shropshire ), plus In Europe, there were about 800 accidents on biogas plants between 2005 and 2015 (tho' only three of them were 'serious' with direct consequences for the human population). Fortunately, 'less than a dozen of them had consequences on humans'. e.g. in France (Saint-Fargeau) - no casualties(?) and Rhadereistedt, Germany (4 dead).

Safety analyses  -
 * a 2016 study compiled a database of 169 accidents involving ADs.
 * A guardian article described ADs as Greenwashing for IPUs.
 * See also Nottingham incident.
 * The Environment Agency published a report on example incidents.

See also (re the Wye catchment)
 * the Preston Brook (a tributary of the River Leadon) accident from 2016,
 * suspicions regarding a total of three incidents on the Llynfi from Great Porthamel Farm and Gatehouse -February 2016 (GP Biotec prosecuted and found guilty ) and July 2016 (river adjacent to AD site) plus the 31/7/2020 fish kill which occurred on the stretch of the river adjacent to the AD site - and
 * one incident in 2022 on the Curl Brook, a tributary of the River Arrow (meeting it at Pembridge), reported in a tweet from Charles Watson of River Action UK (cf. WUF's project on the Curl).
 * The site of an AD at Seabournes (Much Fawley Farm), Fawley, near King's Caple has been subject of a number of concerns.

Water

 * Groundwater
 * Welsh Water
 * Severn Trent Water Authority
 * cf. United Kingdom water companies

Water: abstraction
See Water extraction, Water resources, Water supply and sanitation in the United Kingdom

Drinking
See Drinking water

Irrigation
See Irrigation

'Municipal' (Water Company) WWTWs
Concerns wrt Combined sewer overflow (CSO) events: Emma Duncan/ The Times "it is illegal to spill sewage into rivers when there is no rainfall, or when the sewage treatment plant is operating below capacity. The first is called a “dry” spill, the second an “early” spill."

Smaller scale installations
Contents (chemistry, biology) - see Treatment options and/or infobox below

Treatment Reed bed, Cesspit, Septic tank, Constructed wetland (See in particular 'Phosphorus removal') e.g. Luston ICW: 14200 m2 designed to remove ~250kg/ann phosphorous (to service a STW with a Population equivalent (PE) of 646)- operational report awaited, Feb 2023.

Nutrient source modelling
Sources of excess nutrients - modelled by Source Apportionment GIS (SAGIS) especially as reported from RePhoKUs are calculated as:
 * ~60% 'agricultural',
 * ~30% waste water,
 * ~10% 'other'.

Across the catchment, the RePhoKUs report calculated that there is an excess of 3,000T of phosphates annually above what can be taken up by plant growth, and which is ultimately washed into the river.

In early 2023, DCWW published a more detailed set of phosphorus SAGIS analyses. This indicated a (modelled) combined load apportioning at Hay as: The detailed pie charts for individual waterbodies suggests relatively heavy loading from STWs on the main stem (although only at Rhayader is it >50%; the Hereford section of the Wye and tributaries around Clehonger are very close to, but just below, 50%), and very heavy loading from agricultural sources in more remote areas (~>80%).
 * ~72% 'agricultural',
 * ~25% 'waste water' (23% STW, 2% CSO),
 * ~3% 'other'.

Wildlife trusts

 * Radnorshire Wildlife Trust
 * Herefordshire Wildlife Trust
 * Gwent Wildlife Trust
 * Gloucestershire Wildlife Trust

Protected status
In the catchment, the Wye passes through areas variously designated as In 2020, NRW produced a 'baseline habitats assessment' for Protected sites, including Welsh rivers.
 * AONB, -refuge of rare species:
 * those of limestone woodlands,
 * (one of the few remaining areas with) comparatively large tracts of ancient broadleaved woodland.
 * farmed landscape: pastures, hay meadows, hedges and copses are also rich natural habitats.
 * Farming is an essential part of the landscape's value.
 * Forestry has been an industry for centuries.
 * Quarrying: Limestone continues to be actively quarried.
 * SAC Plain to montane level Water course, containing in particular Ranunculion fluitantis (a 'Plant community') and Callitricho-Batrachion vegetation, and supporting White-clawed (or Atlantic stream) crayfish Austropotamobius pallipes,  Sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus), Brook lamprey (Lampetra planeri), River lamprey (Lampetra fluviatilis), Twaite shad (Alosa fallax), Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar), European bullhead (Cottus gobio), and Otter (Lutra lutra).
 * SSSI. The Wye was the first major river to be designated as a Site of Special Scientific Interest along its entire length.

Statutory Bodies

 * OFWAT
 * Natural Resources Wales
 * Environment Agency

Regional etc.

 * NMB (Nutrient Management Board, c/o Herefs Co Council) - Minutes Sept 22 agenda
 * StW (Save the Wye) - see FAQs
 * TWA (Wye Catchment Citizen Science Association, WCCSA/ Burton Court 9, BC9/ The Wye Alliance (of CitSci groups), TWA)
 * Wye and Usk Foundation (WUF; hosts of Wye Catchment Partnership (WCP); have procured kit for local groups)
 * Wye Samon Association (WSA)

Within the Wye catchment
Citizen Science (kicked off by WSA; 2021 expansion coordinated by Elle vonBenson at Cardiff University):
 * WUF (hosts of WCP; have procured kit for local groups)
 * WSA Subsequently began soil monitoring with a study sampling across the Garren Brook subcatchment, reported via the NMB meeting of 28 September 2022.
 * FoUW See their report to the EAC and the EAC report. With consultancy from Mott MacDonald, FoUW have kicked off further efforts to coordinate CitSci across the catchment
 * FoLugg (through CPRW)
 * FoDore
 * GVAG (Golden Valley Action Group)
 * Yazor Brook group
 * Newton Brook group
 * CPRE(H) (see CPRE)
 * CPRW (See FoUW)
 * FotLW
 * WCCSA/BC9/TWA

Neighbouring or near the Wye catchment

 * FoFW (Friends of Forest /of Dean/ Waterways)
 * STRU (Save the River Usk) See What We Do - Testing - Recording - Reporting - Protesting'.
 * Various Severn catchment groups, including- on the Estuary- the Black Rock Lave Net Fishermen
 * BART (Bristol Avon Rivers Trust) -See in particular River quality information.
 * Friends of the Somerset River Frome (Refers to 'Is your river fit to play in?'

Invertebrate sampling
'Kick sampling' for riverfly larvae.

Observational data
Much of this is organised on a more 'official' level, e.g. by national interest groups; other Apps exist for recording data/ uploading photographs.
 * FreshWater Watch / Earthwatch Europe
 * Bloomin’ Algae | UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology (ceh.ac.uk)
 * the use of Opalometers

e.g. birds from RSPB and other surveys, bats, insects, fish numbers, zoological surveys etc.

National Bodies

 * Afonydd Cymru (Stewardship and research: WUF are a member group/ area)
 * River Action UK (Campaigning group: Charles Watson et al.)
 * The Rivers Trust (Stewardship and research)
 * WRU (Welsh Rivers Union; Campaigning group: Kim Waters et al.)

International Bodies

 * Global Water Works
 * Friends of the River Wye (GWW)

Remediation approaches

 * Nature-based solutions, see, e.g. Reed bed, Constructed wetland
 * Clean-Flo/ SIS Bio
 * cf. also Cardiff Bay project using piped aeration
 * Ultrasound to inhibit the Algal lifecycle.

Communications
See e.g. 'greenhouse agency'.

Press articles
See Wye press articles

Other sources of data
See, e.g., SavetheWye google drive collection

SavetheWye website

Ffrindiau’r Afon Gwy Uchaf Friends of the Upper Wye

BRECON & RADNOR BRANCH OF CPRW

Rotary Monmouth environment pages

Presentations etc at Insights Wales/ Cipolwg Cymru

Private google drive collection re Phosphates and 'industrial' approaches.

Private google document re Nature Friendly Farming for the River Wye.