Wensum Catchment: citizen science helps resolve pollution issue
In the Anglian Demo, a collaboration of partners created an effective ecosystem to collect actionable citizen science data, solving local issues and demonstrating both rigour and effective channels for data to action.
Citizen science helps resolve a local pollution issue
In the Anglian demonstration project for CaSTCo, partners in the Wensum Catchment Partnership, including Norfolk Rivers Trust, The Rivers Trust, the Environment Agency, and Anglian Water worked together with local volunteers to detect and gather evidence for a faulty septic system that was unknown to the owner. They set out protocols that allowed community monitoring to be rigorous and non-confrontational, pin-pointing the pollution source and remedying the issue. Norfolk Rivers Trust’s volunteer coordinator organised and empowered the volunteers to test weekly before and after the location and before and after the solution was implemented.
Together, the partners also validated the accuracy of the monitoring tools and implemented one of the first versions of a pollution reporting program on the EA website, prototyping many new ways for effective integration between community, environmental non-profits, government, and community.
The context
On the River Tat, the Environment Agency monitoring point downstream was failing its waterbody target for phosphate. Because there was no routine upstream testing, they didn’t know why the target was failing.
This waterbody was collaboratively identified as a high priority for a pilot trial of citizen science monitoring by the Wensum Catchment Partnership. The ongoing CaSTCo citizen science program (weekly monitoring) had uncovered high phosphate levels in the upper reaches of the river, indicating that there could be a point-source pollution to be identified.
Who
- Wensum Catchment Partnership
- Volunteers (recruitment drive during the pilot, and many have been testing weekly ever since!)
- CaSTCo members
- Norfolk Rivers Trust
- The Rivers Trust
- Environment Agency
- Anglian Water
- University of East Anglia
Where
River Tat, part of the River Wensum catchment in Norfolk, in the Anglian Demo region
This project shows the power of regular, frequent routine citizen science monitoring for health surveillance also to increases coverage for detecting hitherto unknown sources of water pollution.
Citizen scientists embraced the opportunity to do post intervention monitoring to show that it’s working – phosphate levels have dropped because of the intervention, which the EA can seldom deliver for less severe pollution incidents.
This project highlights the effectiveness of building deep collaboration and trust. Each party worked hard to find ways to accomplish their goal, despite individual limitations. The outcomes foster a better mutual understanding of river management & community perception of the EA’s role.
The dedicated volunteer continues to monitor weekly, building a robust long-term dataset that will provide ‘eyes on the ground’ long past any acute pollution event, being able to respond quickly because they know their local area and what’s normal.
This project is already sharing their research results from the comparison, sharing their tools, and successes with other catchments, amplifying its impact across the country.
Methods
Volunteers used Hanna Checkers – low-range phosphate (HI-713), high-range phosphate (HI-706), and mid-range ammonia (HI-715)
Labs at the University of East Anglia and Environment Agency provided validation samples to ensure the citizen science result’s accuracy.
55
Weeks collecting data (so far)
Benefits
In the majority of cases with faulty septic tanks or missed connections, people don’t know that there’s an issue and, when notified, want to do the right thing.
This project also highlights the risks of septic discharge to dry river beds and small watercourses that can create a ‘nutrient bomb,’ where concentrated point source nutrient pollution is released downstream following rainfall. Without the added resolution provided by citizen science monitoring, this could be misidentified by downstream monitoring as a diffuse pollution problem.
The project emphasizes the importance of collecting hard data. Sometimes, it’s simple: Once you have the data, a simple investigation and intervention can remedy a chronic or acute issue.
This case study led to the collaborative development of the Wensum citizen science pollution reporting framework with the EA CS coordinator and local EA Land & Water Team. Wensum CS volunteers have had training, and it is now live within the Survey123 tool. Will roll out onto the Lark and interest from other areas.
Demonstrating a ‘Weight of Evidence Approach‘
Data AND local knowledge AND expertise were the keys to unlocking this success. The volunteer knew where to look and photographed the pipe to bring to the partners. However, this case study also emphasizes how important a volunteer framework and setting up rigour and awareness in reporting can be.
Volunteers are trained that they are not investigators or regulators and that while sometimes an issue might look obvious, it isn’t always necessarily the case, and in reality, things can be more complex. It is important to promote best practices and help people ensure they are following a ‘non-finger pointing’ protocol (e.g. trespassing, accusing, being reasonable and cautious). This avoids reputational risks for both citizen science and catchment partners, including potential legal complexities where a suspected source is subsequently proven not to be at fault.
Social value
This project provided pathways for volunteers to improve the health of their local river. By providing rigorous tools, expert interpretation, investigation, and volunteer oversight, the volunteers’ hours of effort collecting data have become meaningful in ways it wasn’t possible without this deep collaboration between partners. It serves as an example for other volunteers and regions on how lowering barriers to collaboration and access to rigorous tools can effectively leverage volunteer efforts.
“The data being generated by the citizen scientists is crucial in helping us to better understand the pressures the River Wensum is facing and it is already proving to be instrumental in the targeting of pollution mitigation measures around septic tanks.”
– Dr Richard Cooper, Lecturer in Environmental Sciences, University of East Anglia & Wensum Catchment Partnership Water Quality Working Group Chair
“It has been a momentous year for the Wensum Catchment Partnership, with citizen science making significant headway in not only removing pollution, but giving us the confidence to challenge the status quo of strategic models on nutrient apportionment. Our voice is now listened to round the table and much of this is down to your combined efforts.”
– Kelvin Allen, Chair, Wensum Catchment Partnership