“Our goal is that all sections of the River Otter and its main tributaries move to Moderate or Good ecological status (Environment Agency metrics), by the end of 2028”
The ORCA Action Plan:
How we will deliver this:
- Execute a structured program of water quality testing, using both automated monitoring systems and Citizen Science volunteer test teams.
- Map the sources and quantify the relative ecological impact of key pollutants.
Achieving these goals and publicising the results - supported by a credible data set - will help us
- Focus South West Water on quickly addressing five key polluting assets
- Identify sections of river where the most agricultural pollution is occurring and work with partner organisations to help improve land management and farming practices
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By improving the water quality, our ecosystem will move FROM what you see on the left TO what will be seen on the right |
Water Quality Elements to be gathered through test:
The ORCA testing program will measure and record a number of important elements of river quality:
- Observational and contextual data
- Pollution incident alerts (ID’d by Orca volunteer observations)
- Phosphate (EA “critical contributor to poor water quality”)
- Temperature (>19°C: direct impact on species and survival)
- Turbidity (reduces light & kills plants, smothers fish eggs)
- Total dissolved solids (pollution indicator, affects plant health)
- Dissolved Oxygen (<50%: affects fish and ecosystem)
- Ammonia levels (destructive to fish gills even in very low concentrations, increases algae, reduces oxygen)
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Testing Locations & Timings along the river Otter:
To ensure that the results are consistent and reliable, we are testing the river from Honiton to Otterton at 12 locations, on the same day, twice a month. These locations have been carefully selected based upon points of specific pollution interest.
Generic & Dynamic CSI Volunteer Risk Assessment:
This Risk Assessment has been adapted from the Westcountry Rivers Trust policy document. Relevant Copyright acknowledged with thanks.
Before undertaking the water sampling survey, you must consider the health and safety hazards associated with the site where you are observing the river and whether individual circumstances or any medical conditions expose you to particular hazards.
The risk assessment below details the potential risk associated with conducting a water testing survey and the proposed controls to mitigate these risks. When conducting your survey, if you encounter any of the risks identified below, please follow the control measures described. At the end of this risk assessment there is a dynamic risk assessment, a set of yes/no questions, detailing some of the most common risks you are likely to be faced with, for example water level.
The dynamic risk assessment should be completed at the start of each survey.
*A Dynamic risk assessment is the process of identifying, measuring and evaluating emerging risks in real-time / ‘on the spot’.
You must never enter the river to make your observations. You should find somewhere safe near the river where there is no risk of you slipping into the water. We hope you enjoy some peaceful time observing river life – have fun!
In an emergency, please contact the emergency services – 999
Your responsibility:
Whilst taking part in the Orca Water Quality Testing program, you have the responsibility of ensuring that you are considering you own health and safety and the health and safety of others around you. You should not put yourself in a position that could place you, or others, in danger. You are under no obligation to participate in or continue with the survey if it is not safe to do so. You are under no obligation to visit a particular site. If you have any health and safety concerns about the survey, you should stop the survey and raise your concerns with the Orca Team on [email protected].
We created a simple, yet very important, questionnaire for all our testers. We call it the "Go - NOGO" chart. When considering any testing situation, answer teh questions - if there is a RED answer, then STOP.
More Information & Contact Us
If you would like to learn more about these programs, or you would like to volunteer, then please email us at [email protected]
For full details no all risk assessment issues, please refer to the following document - [ CLICK HERE ]
For all documents used by the river testing team - [ CLICK HERE ]