Your Tidal Thames is a new project aiming to give anyone who cares about the river an opportunity to have a say in the river’s future. It is a joint project between Thames21 and the Thames Estuary Partnership.
The project covers the tidal area of the River Thames – from Teddington Lock near Richmond-upon-Thames and downstream to Haven Point on the north bank of the Thames Estuary in Essex and Warden Point on the south bank in Kent.
As part of the project the organisers want to hear your thoughts and concerns about the tidal Thames. What do you see as the current pressures on the river, what improvements would you like to see? The project aims to give all of us an opportunity to be involved in helping to protect and improve the river environment.
As part of the project the organisers hope to produce a list of practical projects which will improve the tidal Thames, linked to a network of enthusiastic individuals and organisations who can work together to develop the projects after 2012. At present the status of the tidal Thames has been classified as ‘moderate’. The aim is that the river should have ‘good’ chemical status and ecological potential by 2027.
For more information see http://www.thames21.org.uk/yourtidalthames/, where you can also sign up for updates.
You can also contact the project coordinators directly, Alice Hall is on alice.hall@thames21.org.uk and Amy Pryor can be contacted at a.pryor@ucl.ac.uk. Both will be happy to discuss the plan with you in more detail or to come along to chat to your organisation or community group.
The project is being funded by Defra and the Environment Agency and is part of a ‘catchment-based’ approach to working with individuals and organisations that can make a difference to the health of England’s water environments. 25 key river catchments across England have been selected to test out this community approach to river management, before it is expanded across the country.
This catchment-based’ approach aims to deliver and raise awareness of the Water Framework Directive, EU legislation which aims to protect and enhance water quality and the river environment across the European Union.
Image courtesy of Thames 21
