To improve our knowledge of the river and gain a basic understanding of its ecological status our volunteers participate in quarterly monitoring at fourteen points on the Ver and Red plus a couple on the upper Colne. The sites vary from rural locations to urban environments and represent.
It’s part of the FreshWaterWatch citizen science programme and involves simple tests for nitrate and phosphates together with an optical test using a Secchi tube to provide a turbidity score. The water quality nutrient-testing tubes contain a chemical reagent which changes colour in relation to the concentration of dissolved nitrate or phosphate in the sample water. The nitrate test completes in 3 minutes and the phosphate test in 5 minutes. Sampling cups are provided to allow for an accurate and consistent volume of sample.
High levels of nitrates and phosphates most often originate from fertilisers used in agricultural and from treated effluent and unplanned raw sewage discharges from sewage treatment works. These chemicals can be harmful to the delicate chalk stream ecology, especially by encouraging agal growth which in turn can rob the stream of oxygen that so much life depends on. High turbidity is also damaging and the resultant silt can smother invertebrate life and fish eggs on the river bottom also making food for larger species less abundant.
Observations of land use, water colour, flow, visible pollution and others are recorded on each visit too.
Finally, the data collected is used to create a rating for the river for every visit and the pins on the map colour coded accordingly. Green = Good Ecological Status; Orange = Moderate and Red = Poor.
To see the latest scores on the Ver go to: https://www.freshwaterwatch.org/pages/ver-valley-society
If you would like to become a Water Monitor on the River Ver or River Red please contact John Pritchard (Water Monitor Co-ordinator).
Map: ©FreshWaterWatch ©Esri