Wear Upper Operational Catchment
About
The River Wear rises in the Pennines to the east and is formed at Wearhead from the confluence of Killhope Burn and Burnhope Burn. Most of the upper Wear is within the North Pennines AONB, characterised by upland heather and peat moors, and is within the Moor House SAC and North Pennine Moors SPA. The area is rural having a long history of hill farming and mining. The tributaries most affected by pollution from metal mines, are Rookhope and Sedling Burn. Reservoirs at Burnhope, Tunstall & Waskerley provide water suitable for domestic use. Fish migration is restricted by natural waterfalls.
Classifications data for Wear Upper Operational Catchment
Number of water bodies
The number of water bodies in the river basin district. It shows whether these are natural, artificial (such as canals and reservoirs) or have been modified ('heavily modified') for particular uses.
| Water body categories | Natural | Artificial | Heavily modified | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| River, canals and surface water transfers | 7 | 0 | 5 | 12 |
| Lake | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Coastal | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Estuarine | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Groundwater | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 7 | 0 | 8 | 15 |
Ecological status for surface waters
Table summarises the current ecological status of surface water bodies. Water bodies are classified as being at high, good, moderate, poor or bad ecological status or potential.
| Ecological status or potential | Bad | Poor | Moderate | Good | High | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of water bodies | 0 | 1 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 15 |
| Number of water body elements | 0 | 2 | 11 | 10 | 127 | 150 |
Chemical status for surface waters
Table summarises the current chemical status of water bodies. These are classified as being at good or fail.
| Chemical status | Fail | Good | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of water bodies | 15 | 0 | 15 |
| Number of water body elements | 40 | 157 | 197 |
Quantitative status for groundwater
Table summarises the quantitative status of groundwater water bodies. These are classified as being at good or poor.
| Quantitative status | Poor | Good | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of water bodies | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Number of water body elements | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Chemical status for groundwater
Table summarises the chemical status of groundwater water bodies. These are classified as being at good or poor.
| Chemical status | Poor | Good | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of water bodies | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Number of water body elements | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Challenges data for Wear Upper Operational Catchment
Reasons for not achieving good status by business sector
The issues preventing waters reaching good status and the sectors identified as contributing to them. The numbers in the table are individual counts of the reasons for not achieving good status with a confidence status of 'confirmed' and 'probable', where the latest classification is less than good status. There may be more than one reason in a single water body. Note, table does not include reasons for deterioration.
| Significant water management issue | Changes to the natural flow and level of water | Invasive non-native species | Physical modifications | Pollution from abandoned mines | Pollution from rural areas | Pollution from towns, cities and transport | Pollution from waste water |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Agriculture and rural land management | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Domestic general public | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Industry | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Local & central government | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mining and quarrying | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Navigation | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| No sector responsible | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Other | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Recreation | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sector under investigation | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Urban and transport | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Waste treatment and disposal | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Water Industry | 2 | 0 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 2 | 0 | 11 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Objectives data for Wear Upper Operational Catchment
Ecological status or potential objectives for surface water bodies
Table summarises the ecological status and ecological potential objectives set for water bodies in the river basin management plan. Each water body is only counted once in this table. Each water body objective consists of a target status and a date when it was, or is expected to be, met.
| Status | Bad | Poor | Moderate | Good | High | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| By 2015 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| By 2021 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| By 2027 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 13 |
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 0 | 15 |
Chemical status objectives for surface water bodies
Including those with less stringent objectives and extended deadlines
| Status | Fail | Good | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| By 2063 | 0 | 15 | 15 |
| Total | 0 | 15 | 15 |
Quantitative status objectives for groundwater
Including those with less stringent objectives and extended deadlines
| Status | Poor | Good | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Chemical status objectives for groundwater
Including those with less stringent objectives and extended deadlines
| Status | Poor | Good | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0 |