Tame Anker and Mease Catchment Partnership

Catchment partnership vision

Our vision is to protect and improve the quality, diversity, and resilience of the water environment within the Tame Anker and Mease catchment for the benefit of people and wildlife.

Trent Rivers Trust

Related websites

Find out more about the activities and ambitions of this catchment partnership and how you can get involved to help improve the water environment in the catchment.

Catchment challenges

Current challenges identified by partnership

  • Physical modifications

    The urban catchment's historically straightened rivers and barriers limit fish passage, natural processes and biodiversity

  • Pollution from towns, cities and transport

    Pressure from urban development, transport and sewage network particularly HS2 road and urban development

  • Pollution from agriculture and rural areas

    Mixed agriculture within the catchment with most of the rural catchments having phosphate management as a reason for not achieving good status

Wider water environment challenges identified by partnership

  • Connecting communities with nature

    Providing opportunities to connect with nature increases interest in the environment and has a multitude of benefits including improving wellbeing

  • Build environmental resilience and adaptation to climate change

    Climate change is one of the biggest issues we face and its imperative that the catchment can be resilient to changes

  • Removing plastics/litter from the water environment

    As the catchment has some highly urbanised areas, plastic and litter waste is high

  • Reduce storm overflows and drainage system incidents

    There is a high population and complex drainage system in this catchment

  • Protect and restore healthy soils and nutrient balance

    Mixed agriculture within the catchment with most rural catchments having phosphate management as a reason for not achieving good status

  • Support levelling up, growth and jobs

    Levelling up means giving everyone the opportunity to flourish, which benefits the catchment

Future challenges predicted by partnership

  • Physical modifications

    There is extensive modification across watercourses in the catchment, in particular the urban areas

  • Pollution from waste water

    Highly populated catchment with a complex waste water system

  • Pollution from agriculture and rural areas

    Significant pressure on rivers from diffuse pollution, the catchment has issues with phosphate management

Future challenges predicted by Environment Agency

Future challenges in 2050

  • Invasive Non-native Species
  • Pollution from Towns Cities and Transport
  • Pollution from waste water

Emerging challenges

  • Changes to the Natural Flow and Water Levels
  • Pollution from waste water
  • Pollution from Agriculture and Rural Areas

Partnership success highlights 2016 to 2021

River Mease partnership project has restored 9.74 kilometres of watercourses (7.65km main river) with 1970 tonnes of gravel and enhancing 4.8 hectares of in channel habitat and 13.12 hectares of floodplain. For the developer contribution strategy, 3 schemes completed reducing rural diffuse pollution reaching the Mease. In 2021 a further scheme will comprehensively calculate the phosphate reductions from interventions. The Hatchford Brook Project included removal of two weirs, restoration of 400m of channel, and enhancement of 2ha of woodland and meadow habitat. River Rea catchment; creating wetland habitat, enhancing woodland and tree planting, removing weirs and river re-naturalising. In 2020, the Birmingham and Black Country Wildlife Trust partnered Birmingham City Council and Environment Agency to complete river re-naturalisation on the River Cole at 3 locations. The Tame Valley Wetlands team are implementing projects in the middle Tame catchment including Love Your River Cole, The Blythe Alive! and On a Tree by a River. Green Recovery Challenge Fund secured. Warwickshire Wildlife Trust is completing the Fillongley and Bourne natural flood management project. 3000 hedgerow shrubs planted, creating new woodland, 0.6 hectares and 400 metres of hedgerow habitat. Over 40 leaky woody structures installed and pool capacity enlarged for taking flood water. Bourne and Blythe catchments (Tame area), agricultural advisor in post delivering catchment management programme to reduced diffuse pollution including grant scheme for physical interventions and farmer engagement.

Partnership development plans

The partnership is working to increase partner diversity, including businesses and the private sector. We would like to align partner and partnership priorities and produce a communication plan promoting the partnership and the work we do. We will be developing and achieving more multi-year catchment wide projects and targeting resources to priority areas, identifying opportunities where green investment can deliver net gain, environmental enhancement and wider ecosystem services.

Partnership priority actions and measures for 2022 to 2027

  • Confident

    Enhancement/no deterioration measures in 2020-2025 Water Industry National Environment Programme

    Reason for measure
    Control or manage point source discharges
    Delivery mechanism
    Confirmed water industry national environment programme 2020-2025
    Location
    Tame Anker and Mease

  • Confident

    Achieving Cole Valley Catchment Landscape Vision and Love your River Cole, using approach for other urban catchments

    Reason for measure
    Manage modified habitats
    Delivery mechanism
    Green Recovery Challenge Fund/Challenge Fund
    Location
    Tame Lower Rivers and Lakes

  • Confident

    Completing the River Blythe SSSI Restoration Plan improving this protected catchment

    Reason for measure
    Control or manage rural diffuse pollution
    Delivery mechanism
    Environment Land Management Scheme (future full-scale roll-out)
    Location
    Blythe Rivers

  • Confident

    Completing the River Mease Restoration Plan

    Reason for measure
    Control or manage rural diffuse pollution
    Delivery mechanism
    EA Flood/coastal risk management programme
    Location
    Mease from Hooborough Brook to Trent

  • Confident

    Improving management of the wider environment including; Wildlife and habitat, Flooding, Greening the grey

    Reason for measure
    Control or manage urban diffuse pollution
    Delivery mechanism
    Developer funded
    Location
    Tame Upper Rivers Tame Lower Rivers and Lakes

Catchment Partnership contributors

Partners involved in the creation of this page and the actions of the partnership: