Water quality improvements are urgently needed

  • In 2022, there were 299 spills to the Bidwell Brook totalling 2,990 hours (124 days). That was just from the five outfalls (all of which spilled) with Event Duration Monitoring installed. And that was in a particularly dry year. (See Table 1 for details)
  • Three of these outfalls (1 in Rattery and 2 in Dartington) are in the top 10% sites for total duration of spill for South West Water. The worst offender was the Waste Water Treatment Plant in Rattery.
  • The Bidwell Brook discharges into the River Dart right by a very popular bathing and canoeing area. In 2022, around 200 people reported falling ill after swimming in the Dart.

 

Rattery Waste Water Treatment works

It’s just not good enough: The Bidwell Brook is classified as ‘moderate ecological status’, for the reasons shown in Table 1. This must be returned to ‘good’, not only for the sake of wildlife, but also for people, whose health is potentially impacted due to the relatively high number of sewage outfalls on the Brook, which then flows into the River Dart. Significant challenges: housing development in Dartington, some farming practices within the catchment as a whole and private sewage discharges are all contributing to the problems. These need to be dealt with on a whole catchment basis (as highlighted in Table 2). We all need to work together and support each other to achieve improvements - statutory organisations, landowners, farmers, businesses, environmental groups and individuals. The Bidwell Brook Partnership aims to help by bringing these together, with the Bidwell Brook as its focus.  

Importance for Wildlife

The Bidwell Brook’s valley is an important wildlife corridor, supporting many species, including otters and bats. It connects several wildlife sites, including ancient woodland, bat roosts and existing and planned conservation projects. So there are great opportunities to make it an even better natural environment - a real wildlife haven.  

Risk of Flooding

New housing development has only increased the need for a programme of co-ordinated flood risk management, especially in the lower reaches of the Brook. Both Parish Councils have declared a Climate and Environment Emergency and flood mitigation is an urgent need. This interactive map done by Friends of the Earth and Manchester University shows the risk of extreme weather near you.  

Impact of drought

Urgent measures need to be taken to alleviate problems during droughts, which are becoming more frequent and intense. The Brook is a relatively shallow and narrow water source for most of its length, so any significant decrease in volume of water will have a high negative impact.  

Contribution to people’s mental and physical health

The valley of the Brook adds significantly to the area’s natural beauty and contributes to the physical and mental health of both parishioners and visitors. This is particularly in the stretches where they are able to walk alongside the water. A popular local walk by the Brook provides one of the few off-road footpath opportunities in Rattery. Both Rattery and Dartington communities are strongly in favour of measures to nurture the natural environment and provide access to open spaces.  

A walk along the Brook