Ilkley's bid to become UK's first river bathing spot steps forward as consultation closes after weighty debate

This stretch of the Wharfe within the West Yorkshire spa town is pitched to be the UK’s first designated bathing water spot in a river, a level of monitoring usually reserved for the sea.

It’s taken two years to get to this stage, after campaigners’ own probes laid bare a “horror” of waste in the waters at the popular picnic spot, and the final decision now sits with the Environment Secretary as a consultation closes with over 1,000 responses.

This is not the final solution, the Ilkley Clean Rivers Group said, but signals a significant step which is watched with interest by conservationists nationwide.

“The British countryside is stunningly beautiful, but our rivers can be wastelands,” said Ilkley campaigner and professor of health innovation, Prof Becky Malby. “This could be a step forward in British understanding of our river environments.

“If we understand this stretch of the Wharfe and its water quality, it triggers a much greater interest in the water courses across the north of England.”

The 300m stretch of river between Ilkley Main Bridge and an area known as Beanlands Island is a popular paddling spot, much loved by generations of families.

The area is popular with tourists and walkers, said Prof Malby, as well as with people that live in the town. Fellow campaigner Karen Shackleton added that paddling here had been a large part of her childhood.

"My parents grew up in Ilkley, swimming and playing in the river, I grew up here doing the same," she said. "While any water is potentially dangerous, it is something we've been doing for years."

Two years ago the group of residents, which happened to include some scientists, anglers, walkers and professors, began to question what was in the waters.

Raw sewage, they found, was often released into the river from an overflow outlet upstream, to prevent people’s homes from flooding in times of heavy rain.

Such discharges are legal, but do impact on water quality, and while the system is designed for storms, campaigners claim it was happening every time it rained.

In the year to April 2020 they found there were 201 discharges over 144 days, a number Yorkshire Water has attributed to “significant” storms in February, in which Ilkley saw more than double its usual amount of rainfall.

'Significant' investment

There have been major changes, with Yorkshire Water pumping in funds, monitoring overflow, and installing new screens and pumps to trap debris and minimise emissions.

It’s own investigations have found three sources of surface water which are adding to the problem, and it now seeks solutions. This, Yorkshire Water adds, is an issue which will take time and money, with landowners and farmers and a number of bodies all working together.

The first step, campaigners said, is in securing bathing water status, and Yorkshire Water as well as Ilkley Town Council have been among the first backers.

This could result in this area of the river being the first in England to be monitored through the bathing season, from mid-May to the end of September.

“The British public like the outdoors, they like picnics and river paddling and playing pooh-sticks on the bridge, and people expect for that to be OK,” said Prof Malby. “The bathing status is a way of ensuring that we have regular monitoring. That doesn’t mean it’s safe to swim in at all times - we just want to make sure it’s clean.”

Monitoring

Were this stretch of the Wharfe to secure bathing water status, the Environment Agency would collect samples to report on its water quality.

Martin Christmas, of the Environment Agency, said it was "heartening" to see so many responses, with more than 1,000 people playing an active role in the consultation.

"It's a real testament to how communities view the benefit they get from a healthy environment," he said.

"We have come a long way in improving water quality in Yorkshire. The River Don, once the dirtiest river in Europe, now has salmon returning to Sheffield city centre.

"Here in Wharfedale, paddling, rowing boats, paddleboarding and swimming are all part of how people want to use the river environment."

Emma Howard Boyd, Environment Agency chair, said securing such status could potentially set a precedent for other river campaign groups to make similar applications.

“Everyone has a part to play in improving rivers and change doesn’t happen overnight," she added. "It takes time, financial investment and cooperation.

“If rivers popular for swimming like the Wharfe get bathing water status, we will work with the local community, farmers and Yorkshire Water to identify what’s needed to meet the required standards.”

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James Mitchinson