Have you responded to the Storm Overflow Reduction Plan Consultation?
In light of an open consultation to expand the Storm Overflow Reduction Plan, the Missing Salmon Alliance are urging the public to tell the UK government to include all storm overflows to reduce pollution, in order to reduce losses of our wild Atlantic salmon and sea trout and their freshwater and coastal habitats.
In August 2022, the UK government published its Storm Overflow Reduction Plan. At the time, concerns were raised that the plan would take too long to implement and would mean we would continue to see sewage being discharged into our rivers, often illegally, until 2050. And while the UK government prioritised bathing waters and “high priority” sites (include SSSIs and Chalk Streams) they completely forgot that many of these discharges spill into our estuaries and coastal waters. They missed these out of the plan.
Now, the UK government are looking to correct their mistake. They have launched a consultation on whether they should be included, which closes on 24th July.
The MSA are advocating for the protection of freshwater environments and the improvement of water quality and quantity in order to and reduce losses of salmon and sea trout in our rivers, coastal waters, and open ocean.
To maximise the survival of salmon and sea trout through our estuaries, and reduce pollution to improve ecological health, the MSA are urging everyone to respond to the four questions set out in the consultation and ensure that all storm overflows are subject to this plan.
The MSA advise responding to the four questions with words along the lines of the following:
1. Should there be an ecological standard for our estuaries and coastal waters? Yes!
2. What areas should that standard include? It should ensure there is no ecological harm to all fish species. This would include species upon which these fish feed, and their habitats, including invertebrates, molluscs, other fish species, etc.
3. Should other areas be added to the list of high priority sites? Yes, known migratory routes for salmon and sea trout (and other venerable migratory fish e.g. shad). Also, known and economically important fish spawning and nursery areas such as known bass nursery areas and the habitats upon which they depend, including sea grass beds not already within protected areas, should be included as high priority sites under the plan.
4. Should all overflows, including in estuaries and coastal waters be included in the plan? Yes, many fish species migrate or move between coastal waters, estuaries and freshwater water as part of their life cycle and are impacted by poor water quality in salt, brackish and freshwater. It would be a major omission to not include storm overflows in coastal and estuarine waters (those not already covered by the Storm Overflow Reduction Plan) based on the receiving body of water. The issue is the management and legal compliance of the discharge no matter which body of water receives that discharge.
As an Alliance of six organisations, we will build on the existing work of our partners and maximise our impact by taking a coordinated approach and vital action in order to halt and reverse the decline of wild Atlantic salmon.
The goal of the Missing Salmon Alliance is to build an evidence-base to influence national and international decision-makers to regulate activities that adversely impact wild Atlantic salmon.
The Missing Salmon Alliance
The MSA is comprised of the following members:
Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust, Atlantic Salmon Trust, the Angling Trust with Fish Legal, The Rivers Trust and Fisheries Management Scotland.
https://www.missingsalmonalliance.org