Today I was host to Theo Pike from the Wandle Trust; Theo wanted to see the River Goyt. Our original plan had been to fish for Grayling, have a chat, take some photos, ... but the recent rains caused us to think again.

We had a look at the Goyt/Tame confluence in Stockport under the M60, and it was quite fast and dirty. Then called in at various points on up the Goyt until we arrived in New Mills; standing at the Sett/Goyt confluence it was apparent the Sett was running significantly clearer than the Goyt. We took this photo from the Union Road Bridge; the Goyt is on the right in the photo.

A few miles upstream in Whaley Bridge we stopped off to look at the river where it passes under the Macclesfield Road - it looked perfectly clean; a surprise, and presumably a consequence of it being a tailwater; immediately downstream of the two large, fairly empty public drinking water reservoirs, Fernilee and Errwood. A quick trip back a quarter of a mile or so downstream to where the Goyt passes beneath the Buxton Road bridge in Whaley Bridge and the river was filthy.

I knew that Toddbrook reservoir (owned by British Waterways and an feeder for the Peak Forest Canal) had a an overflow and a sluiceway into the Goyt, and also that it had been drained recently. A drive up to the reservoir revealed a fairly fast-flowing and coloured sluiceway (is this perhaps Todd Brook) but also the reservoir sump being pumped-out into the sluiceway before it joins the Goyt (apologies for poor photos in failing light); hopefully it's possible to make out the pumped-out discharge from the reservoir appears to hold much more suspended sediment than the water in the sluiceway

I reported the incident to the EA Hotline: I was called back shortly after, and then again within the hour with the news that the reservoir owner British Waterways and then their contractor had been called, and the pumps would be switched off for the weekend. It will be very interesting to see if this affects how the river looks at the Sett/Goyt confluence by Sunday/Monday. The EA will visit Monday morning to discuss what next with (presumably) British Waterways and their contractor.

In hindsight I wished that I'd had with me four clean bottles: I could have taken a Goyt water sample from upstream of this discharge, another with water from the sluiceway (Todd Brook), the third with the pumped-out discharge water, and finally one with Goyt water from downstream of the discharge. At lunchtime Theo and I had met with my angling club president: he recounted how samples collected by the club at a previous pollution incident had been discredited by the EA because the bottles had been "contaminated". Hmmm, where to buy "clean" bottles ...

What action should I expect from the EA?

Andrew

Andrew, If you are ever in the region of Alfreton, our EA inspector of pollution offices at Swanwich give out bottles foc. I cant see why your local office doesnt do the same. I've taken samples that have decided £1/2m cases and you need to have good method, exact times and good labelling. Todbrook is being repaired and you will know the ownership of the fish has been in dispute, involving FL on behalf of the angling club.

What action from the EA?
'The EA will visit Monday morning to discuss what next with (presumably) British Waterways and their contractor'.

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Thanks Warren. In addition to asking what we should expect of the EA, I should have asked what should I be doing.
Was told by EA on Fri eve that they can't prevent anyone dumping anything they want into a river; in this case British Waterways or contractor dumping sediment from Toddbrook into Goyt. I wonder if this true.
My "evidence" is that it looks wrong to Theo and to me ... am I being niaive relying on our EA to gather empirical evidence?

(PS didn't know there was dispute over fish ownership)

The EA have not been involved in the recent removal of coarse fish; that was done by a contractor. They have been following the drain down though. It is move likely that the EA cannot resist an inline reservoir discharging into the outlet stream. I asked the question (to the local EA) of a possible mobilisation of silt due to depleted levels back in September and wasn't left with the impression that anyone was making light of their responsibilities towards the fish.

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added photos

I'm sure I've been there (admittedly a long time ago), and have seen the rivers running like that where they converge. Is the slump pumped out regularly, or does it run discoloured for a long time after the pumping?

The last time I saw them running different it was in Jan 2008, and that time it was the other way around: the Sett was filthy and the Goyt clear. Back then a quarry up the Sett was washing a load of sediment into the river
The reservoir is only being pumped because of maintenance work; so far as I know it may have been done also during 2009 and also a few months back - it isn't a regular occurrence thankfully.
Today, following the pumps being shut down on Fri eve, the Goyt is running clear again ... I hope it stays that way
Andrew

Temper your thoughts with the fact that this can also be a phenomenon which is naturally occuring in river systems, dependant on catchment and land type.
Look at this photo on one of our major rivers.

FishPal - Scotland - Tweed - Prospects

This is natural occurence in this picture, but simillarities are obvious.

regards
bert

Natural?

Have a look at the unprotected and over-grazed riparian meadows.

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Today's update: the EA pollution man visited this morning and has allowed the British Waterways contractor to re-commence pumping. It has rained a lot overnight. He took a sample from the Todd Brook, then a sample of water pumped from the res 5 minutes after pumping started. Held both up to the light and decided that they were roughly similar so the pumping could go ahead...

So I said "what if you'd gone up and the brook was running clear (like it was when I went on Sunday); would you have allowed them to pump then?". He went through the "we can't stop them polluting; but we can prosecute" and insinuated that his decision may have been different.

What ever argument I proposed he wasn't moving. The res was built in 1831 so there's potentially 180 years worth of sediment in the sump!

What do I do now, approach Fish Legal, or give up?

PS He hadn't bothered to look at my photos from Friday before doing his site visit.
PPS I asked him about me collecting samples; he said the EA would recognise only samples they had collected.