Broads Water Quality Partnership
Broads Water Quality Partnership
The Broads Water Quality Partnership was established in 2006 to provide an integrated and holistic approach to addressing water quality issues, particularly diffuse sources of pollution, across the Broadland Rivers catchment. The Partnership is made up of the following organisations: Broads Authority, Anglian Water, Environment Agency, Essex and Suffolk Water, Water Management Alliance and Natural England.
The long-term aim of the Broads Water Quality Partnership is to restore the quality of waterbodies throughout the Broads to good ecological status (as defined by the EU Water Framework Directive 2000), or better, for the benefit of present and future generations.
To avoid any duplication with the Defra Catchment Sensitive Farming Initiative, the Partnership has agreed to link closely with this scheme and initially focus its efforts in the following areas:
- diffuse pollution from rural sewerage
- run-off from urban areas
- run-off from highways
- pollution from boats
- a programme of water quality monitoring
The Partnership will provide an umbrella for all water quality issues and initiatives in the Broads, whilst ensuring that project work is complementary and not duplicating existing initiatives. It will seek to implement projects, events and communications that will:
- Promote sustainable use of all land in the Broads
- Encourage those industries which affect the Broads to use “Best Practice methods” to minimise their impact
- Promote the careful use of raw materials brought into the Broads catchment, including phosphorus
- Encourage all those who have small package treatment works to use the best treatment methods and to provide the highest level of maintenance
- Produce or obtain good quality information in a range of forms and make it readily available for all to use
- Encourage all those who live and work in the Broads catchment to have greater awareness and be actively involved in its protection
- Where appropriate and feasible, advance current knowledge through research and disseminate new information effectively
- Secure appropriate training and education
The Partnership will not be directly involved in enforcement. Matters requiring enforcement action will be dealt with by the relevant competent authority in the usual way.
How the Water Quality Partnership operates and its overall aims (pdf document) [62kb]
Salinity monitoring in the Broads
Incursions of seawater into the lower end of the Broadland rivers is a daily feature given the tidal nature of these lowland watercourses. On very high tides and tidal surge events salt water penetrates much further up the river channels than normal. Another route for seawater to enter the Broads is the intrusion through the ground, and into the surface water in drains near to the coast between Sea Palling and Winterton.
Monitoring how the levels of seawater varies and changes over time is vital in managing the wetland environments of the Broads. Below are some useful sources of information relating to salinity monitoring.
Environment Agency salinity logging points
Guide to the relationship between salinity measures (pdf document) [37kb]
Partnership initiatives
Partner organisations are involved in many joint projects and campaigns to protect water quality in The Broads. Below are links to further information.
Correct disposal of sewage from boats (pdf document) [125kb]
How to reduce phosphate entering the Broads (pdf document) [215kb]
