North Kent

Catchment partnership vision

Our vision is to work in partnership with local communities, improving the ecological condition of the Medway and Swale estuaries and tributaries. To raise awareness of the importance of the estuaries, along with the necessity of striking a balance between the needs of people and wildlife.

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

  • Pollution from agriculture and rural areas

    The Medway Estuary is downstream of significant agricultural land use and is impacted by diffuse pollution

  • Pollution from towns, cities and transport

    North Kent is a heavily urban catchment, vulnerable to pollution from run-off and industry

  • Pollution from waste water

    North Kent is a densely populated catchment and the Medway Estuary is downstream of a large catchment

Wider water environment challenges identified by partnership

  • Nature Recovery, protect and enhance rare habitats including chalk streams

    Catchment includes significant numbers of protected sites, habitats and species; MCZs, SSSIs, chalk streams, sea grass

  • Reduce storm overflows and drainage system incidents

    Catchment already under pressure from CSO sewage discharge and further population growth is projected in region

  • Nature Recovery, designated areas for nature and biodiversity

    Catchment's biodiversity already being impacted upon by issues, such as rising sea levels and invasive species

  • Support Nature Recovery Network and Local Nature Recovery Strategy

    Many of the issues within the catchment require a joined approach to successfully addressing them

  • Build environmental resilience and adaptation to climate change

    Climate change is already having an impact on the catchment, especially around water level management, INNS and prevalence of fruit farming sector

  • Removing plastics/litter from the water environment

    Catchment has seen a significant increase in plastics/litter entering the estuary and its tributaries

Future challenges predicted by partnership

  • Pollution from agriculture and rural areas

    The catchment lies with what is known as the North Kent Fruit Belt, in which pesticides play a key role in production

  • Pollution from towns, cities and transport

    Significant pressure upon the catchment from proposed large numbers of new housing in an area where existing infrastructure is already inadequate

  • Changes to the natural flow and water levels

    Water scarcity from both increased demand and the impacts of climate change (longer drier summers), in an already water stressed part of the country

Future challenges predicted by Environment Agency

Future challenges in 2050

  • Pollution from Towns Cities and Transport
  • Pollution from waste water
  • Changes to the Natural Flow and Water Levels

Emerging challenges

  • Pollution from waste water
  • Pollution from Towns Cities and Transport

Partnership success highlights 2016 to 2021

Since 2016 the North Kent Catchment Partnership (NKCP) have identified and evidenced the impact of contaminated road runoff from the A2 to the White Drain watercourse. We have been working with the Environment Agency and Highways England to progress a nature based solution to treat the contaminated road runoff, before it enters the water course. The North Kent Catchment Partnership have been working with local interest groups, like the Friends of Westbrook and Stonebridge Pond to identify and address issues affecting the watercourse and practical advice and works to improve eel migration across the catchment. The North Kent Catchment Partnership has also benefited from achievements in the Medway catchment, delivered through the Medway Catchment Partnership, as the Medway estuary is also partially within this catchment partnership area. Water quality in the Medway has been improved through natural flood management interventions that also reduce diffuse pollution to the Medway and estuary. Water resource work in the Medway through the PROWATER project and Holistic Water for Horticulture has also benefited the estuary, and will continue to do so, as these projects develop and prove the concepts.

Partnership development plans

We would like to further embed the partnership approach to our work, increasing our focus on engagement and using the catchment partnership as a catalyst for collective and co-ordinated action. We hope to measure the success of this by continued or increased delivery of partnership projects in the catchment which focus on catchment level priorities.

Partnership priority actions and measures for 2022 to 2027

  • Confident

    The White Drain habitat and water quality improvements

    Reason for measure
    Control or manage urban diffuse pollution
    Delivery mechanism
    Highways England Programme
    Location
    White Drain

  • Confident

    Saltmarsh regeneration

    Reason for measure
    Mitigate the impacts on ecology from physical modifications in modified waters
    Delivery mechanism
    Grant giving trusts and businesses
    Location
    Kent North

  • 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
    Kent North

  • Confident

    The Westbrook and Stonebridge Pond habitat improvements, including abstraction and low flows

    Reason for measure
    Control or manage urban diffuse pollution
    Delivery mechanism
    Grant giving trusts and businesses
    Location
    White Drain and Lakes

  • Confident

    Review of abstraction across North Kent catchment

    Reason for measure
    Control or manage abstractions
    Delivery mechanism
    WEIF Water Environment Improvement Fund
    Location
    White Drain and Lakes

  • Less certain

    Map and assess the health of chalk streams within catchment

    Reason for measure
    Manage modified habitats
    Delivery mechanism
    WEIF Water Environment Improvement Fund
    Barriers to delivery
    Securing appropriate funding
    Location
    White Drain and Lakes

  • Less certain

    Scoping improvements to eel passage across the North Kent Marshes

    Reason for measure
    Manage modified habitats
    Delivery mechanism
    Grant giving trusts and businesses
    Barriers to delivery
    Securing appropriate funding
    Location
    White Drain and Lakes

  • Less certain

    Addressing threats to water quality from houseboat sewage discharge

    Reason for measure
    Control or manage point source discharges
    Delivery mechanism
    Grant giving trusts and businesses
    Barriers to delivery
    Funding not identified
    Location
    Kent North

Catchment Partnership contributors

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