CamEO Catchment Partnership

Catchment partnership vision

The vision of the CamEO (Cam and Ely Ouse) Catchment Partnership is to restore and improve the quality and resilience of the water environment in the catchment and, in doing so, protect and enhance the benefits it provides to nature, communities and businesses. Inclusivity and participation are at the heart of our approach in providing strategic direction for the catchment and connectivity across the sub-catchment partnerships. Whilst also aligning the interests and resources of public, private and third sector organisations. By working collaboratively, CamEO will facilitate a shared understanding of environmental need that engages and empowers communities and stakeholders to ensure positive sustainable outcomes for the catchment.

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

    Physical modifications have prevented our rivers from functioning properly, disconnecting rivers from floodplains

  • Pollution from waste water

    Growth, effluent discharge and climate change impacts on water quality in rivers, chalk streams, and waterbodies

  • Changes to the natural flow and water levels

    Significant adverse impact on vital chalk streams from insufficient flow and increasing pressure from regional growth

Wider water environment challenges identified by partnership

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

    As a globally rare habitat CamEO's chalk streams need protecting and enhancing

  • Nature Recovery, designated areas for nature and biodiversity

    Reviewing current designation requirements or creating new designations to protect habitats such as chalk streams

  • Build environmental resilience and adaptation to climate change

    CamEO has experienced both serious flooding and prolonged drought in the past five years, damaging rivers and connected ecosystems

  • Protect and restore healthy soils and nutrient balance

    The CamEO catchment is intensively farmed and diffuse pollution form agriculture present significant challenges for CamEO rivers

  • Connecting communities with nature

    Important to reach new communities with CaBA engagement and increase access to knowledge and understanding through citizen science

  • Reduce storm overflows and drainage system incidents

    Storm overflows contribute to the damage of rare chalk river ecosystems

Future challenges predicted by partnership

  • Changes to the natural flow and water levels

    Over-demand and abstraction deprives rivers of average natural flows and adversely impacts aquifers

  • Pollution from agriculture and rural areas

    Reduction is needed of inputs of nutrients, organic matter, sediment and other pollutants from wastewater works, farmland, roads and other urban and rural sources

  • Invasive Non-native Species

    The need to limit and eradicate invasive species because they are a threat to the biosecurity of our native species

Future challenges predicted by Environment Agency

Future challenges in 2050

  • Invasive Non-native Species
  • Changes to the Natural Flow and Water Levels
  • Pollution from waste water

Emerging challenges

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

Partnership success highlights 2016 to 2021

Key successes since 2016:

  • established 4 sub-catchment partnerships driven by local stakeholder engagement in the Cam, Lark, Wissey and Little Ouse and Thet catchments
  • registered as a Charitable Incorporated Organisation for charity operation of the River Lark Catchment Partnership in 2018
  • volunteer driven river restoration and habitat improvement projects across CamEO with projects on the River Lark, Mel and Shep
  • campaigns addressing invasive non-native species across CamEO, such as floating pennywort in the River Cam catchment, giant hogweed and Himalayan balsam on the Bourn Brook and River Lark catchment
  • volunteer driven Riverfly invertebrate monitoring programme across the River Lark, River Little Ouse and River Granta
  • developed the River Lark agricultural abstraction improvement project as part of the Defra abstraction reform initiative trialled within CamEO as a ‘priority catchment'
  • developed a natural capital evaluation for CamEO
  • increased landowner engagement in the Wissey, Lark, Little Ouse and Thet catchments, with interventions and trials implemented through Water Sensitive Farming initiative
  • catchment appraisal of the River Lark and developed the River Lark Action Plan with local MP’s support
  • published Cam Valley Forum’s Let It Flow
  • Little Ouse Waterspace Study.

Partnership development plans

Over the coming years we want to see institutional development of CamEO as a catchment partnership to serve catchment based approach implementation. Also further promoting development of self-sustaining sub-catchment partnerships for project delivery with a view to introducing formalised governance structures. We shall develop stakeholder led integrated catchment strategies that are firmly evidence-based and guide our work with partners, ensure optimal allocation of resources and maximise benefit of outcomes.

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
    Cam and Ely Ouse

  • Confident

    Water for Tomorrow

    Reason for measure
    Control or manage abstractions
    Delivery mechanism
    EU funding
    Location
    Cam Rhee and Granta Lark

  • Confident

    Little Ouse and Thet diffuse pollution - treatment wetlands

    Reason for measure
    Control or manage rural diffuse pollution
    Delivery mechanism
    WEIF Water Environment Improvement Fund
    Location
    Little Ouse and Thet

  • Confident

    Brecks Fen Edge and Rivers Heritage Lottery Fund Landscape Partnership Scheme: River Lark Channel Restoration Project

    Reason for measure
    Mitigate the impacts on ecology from physical modifications in modified waters
    Delivery mechanism
    Heritage Lottery Fund
    Location
    Lark (Abbey Gardens to Mildenhall)

  • Confident

    Removal of fish barriers on the River Granta

    Reason for measure
    Mitigate the impacts on ecology from physical modifications in modified waters
    Delivery mechanism
    WEIF Water Environment Improvement Fund
    Location
    Granta

  • Confident

    The Granta - Improving natural capital and resilience Pilot

    Reason for measure
    Manage modified habitats
    Delivery mechanism
    WEIF Water Environment Improvement Fund
    Location
    Granta

  • Less certain

    Lark and Linnet Upland Catchment natural flood management (NFM) to reduce sedimentation

    Reason for measure
    Control or manage rural diffuse pollution
    Delivery mechanism
    Environment Land Management Scheme (future full-scale roll-out)
    Barriers to delivery
    Landowner engagement and establishment of Environmental Land Management Schemes
    Location
    Lark (US Hawstead) Linnet Hawstead Tributary Lark (Hawstead to Abbey Gardens)

  • Less certain

    Little Ouse eel and fish pass project

    Reason for measure
    Mitigate the impacts on ecology from physical modifications in modified waters
    Delivery mechanism
    WEIF Water Environment Improvement Fund
    Barriers to delivery
    Previous application unsuccessful due to other projects required prior to delivery
    Location
    Little Ouse River

  • Less certain

    Connecting the River Lark with its floodplain

    Reason for measure
    Mitigate the impacts on ecology from physical modifications in modified waters
    Delivery mechanism
    Environment Land Management Scheme (future full-scale roll-out)
    Barriers to delivery
    Landowner engagement and establishment of Environmental Land Management Schemes
    Location
    Lark (Abbey Gardens to Mildenhall)

  • Less certain

    Mill River back-water pond extension and flood plain creation project

    Reason for measure
    Control or manage point source discharges
    Delivery mechanism
    WEIF Water Environment Improvement Fund
    Barriers to delivery
    Funding and getting appropriate permits
    Location
    Mill River

  • Less certain

    Resuscitating the Wissey - improving water quality and habitat connectivity

    Reason for measure
    Control or manage rural diffuse pollution
    Delivery mechanism
    Other local funding
    Barriers to delivery
    Funding and landowner engagement
    Location
    Wissey - Lower

  • Less certain

    Beavers in the Wissey

    Reason for measure
    Manage modified habitats
    Delivery mechanism
    Other local funding
    Barriers to delivery
    Funding and landowner agreement
    Location
    Wissey - Lower

  • Wider water environment

    Anglian Water Chalk Stream Flagship Project including Lark Natural Capital Assessment & full Catchment Restoration Strategy

    Reason for measure
    Nature Recovery, protect and enhance rare habitats including chalk streams
    Delivery mechanism
    Potential future water industry programme
    Location
    Lark

  • Wider water environment

    Greater Cambridge Chalk Stream Project - delivered in partnership by Cambridge Combined Authority (South Cambs District & Cambs City Councils)

    Reason for measure
    Nature Recovery, protect and enhance rare habitats including chalk streams
    Delivery mechanism
    Other Public funding
    Location
    Cam Lower Cam Rhee and Granta

  • Wider water environment

    The River Lark tributaries water monitoring project, embedding methodologies developed in the Catchment Systems Thinking Cooperative project

    Reason for measure
    Connecting communities with nature
    Delivery mechanism
    Other Public funding
    Location
    Lark

Catchment Partnership contributors

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