Our customers want us to play our part in protecting our environment and we have a legal duty to do so. One of the ways we are achieving this is through our Flourishing Environment Fund, which gives small

grants to organisations and charities protecting their local greenspaces. It helps us achieve our Flourishing Environment outcome and goal to serve our communi-ties.

The fund is specifically for wetland habitats, such as rivers, lakes and ponds, and wetland species such as water voles, otters, brown trout and kingfisher.

This is the first year of the fund which went to some fantastic projects across the region including:

The restoration of a stretch of Suffolk chalk stream,

benefitting brown trout

The acquisition of land next to one of our own Sites

of Special Scientific Interest in Norfolk

The management of a chain of wetland sites in north

Suffolk

The repair of a pump house to ensure the protection

of a wetland nature reserve in Peterborough

Purchasing tools to help a volunteer group in Cam-

bridge protect their local wildspaces

Not just nature Whilst these projects are focussed on benefitting bio-diversity, they bring many other benefits too. For ex-

ample, restoring rivers to a more natural state im-proves water quality, which is good for us if we’re ab-

stracting it, and makes them more resilient to pollu-tion. Other projects provide public access for local communities.

We’ll be working with our comms team to make sure

these projects, and our contribution, get good publici-ty in the media and across social networks.

Chris Gerrard

Let’s not beat about the bush, Anglian Water has over 6,900 operational sites across the region supporting a variety of important habi-tats, including hedgerows and trees. These

special features create more than just a boundary, they also help support a rich diver-sity of species and provide habitat connec-tions across the landscape. We have a legal duty to conserve and enhance biodiversity in the course of our operations and must there-fore ensure that we follow best practice guide-

lines.

Hedgerows and trees should be managed in late autumn and winter and ideally, in January and February. This allows the fruit and berries

to provide a foraging resource for birds and mammals. Works should be avoided during the bird nesting season from 1st March until 31st July. If works are required during this time then nesting bird surveys should be com-pleted beforehand by a competent person. Hedgerows should be managed on rotation

either by cutting one side, the other side and then the top in subsequent years or by cutting all sides in a year and managing on a 2 to 3

year rotation. Leaving ground cover at the base and a buffer of long grass either side adds to the wildlife value. Thicker, bushier hedges with berries left on the plant are bet-

ter for wildlife!

For further information please see the biodi-versity pages on HAWK or get in contact at biodiversity@anglianwater.co.uk. Hedge Man-agement PDF Megan Gee / Kylie Jones

See our Blog for the full article

We have been working in partnership with The Broads Authority at Whitlingham WRC since 2000 to manage the wildlife-rich wetland we own by the River Yare. Amongst other things, the site is home to water voles,

marsh harriers and the rare Norfolk hawker dragonfly. The damp conditions make it very difficult to manage and this is where the Authority’s ‘Fen Harvester’ ma-chine comes into its own. Its low ground pressure means despite weighing 400kg it hardly makes a mark, ensuring there’s no damage to this precious habitat. Each year part of the site is cut to maintain

the open habitat. In the future, the cut material could be used in our own composting facility – turning waste into an income stream. Mike Drew

Fen Harvester

The autumn is a critical time in the fight to control weeds

for farmers growing combinable crops. This battle to con-trol weeds such as blackgrass has gone beyond the ques-tion of what herbicide to use, due to ever increasing levels

of resistance. It has become one of the main drivers behind farmers cropping choice and soil management.

Cultural controls:

The starting point of weed control is looking at what are classed as cultural controls. The level of seed return from weeds that grew in the previous crop is assessed and deci-sions made based on that. Where the weed pressure is

high, then seeds can be ploughed in, bringing up weed free soil. If the pressure is low, then stale seedbeds will be

used. This involves a shallow cultivation which will cause seed to soil contact and encourage growth. This is then sprayed off and killed with glyphosate. The loss of this active would be a se-

vere detriment to UK agriculture.

Chemical control:

When the next crop is planted, a pre-emergence herbicide will be applied. In some crops this is the last opportunity to control weeds effectively using chemicals. A number of different active ingredients are typically used together to

create what is referred to as a ‘chemical stack’. This is im-portant to avoid the further build-up of herbicide resistance.

As these chemicals are applied to bare soils (when crops are just planted), we often see them wash off and end up in raw water samples e.g. metazachlor and flufenacet .

The option to control grass weeds in growing crops be-comes more limited for cereals. The mainstay are based on

sulfonylurea herbicides. These are often used at reduced dose rates due to cost and this has led to reduced efficacy. When growing oil seed rape, there are more options for post-emergence weed control. These are used while the target is small in the autumn and winter and in marginal conditions with often wet soils. As before, this means they

are detected in raw waters. Examples include; propyza-

mide, carbetamide and quinmerac.

If this regime is not effective, grass weeds will be seen in the spring. It is becoming increasingly common for growers to destroy areas of weeds and the crop they are growing in. This

stops the seeds being returned and allows for more effective control in the following autumn.

Tom Edmondson

Metaldehyde, the active ingredient in slug pellets, has been detected in samples across the region in the last couple of months. The levels are over the drinking water standard of 0.1 ug/l and are in short spikes rather than

prolonged exceedances. As crops are drilled, they need to be protected from slugs, a pest which can cause com-plete crop loss. Other actives which are starting to be detected as the season progresses include the oilseed rape herbicides; carbetamide, propzyamide and metaza-chlor. The catchment team are raising awareness about these actives through the agricultural sector. As we move

further into the winter period and as drains start running,

it is likely we will see more, prolonged spikes of these ac-tives. Kelly Hewson-Fisher

More commonly known as sweet corn by the general public there is actually little maize grown in the UK for human consumption. Lik-ing the warmer and brighter south of the UK,

maize is a more common forage crop for the

winter feeding of cattle in areas such as Corn-wall, Devon and the south coast where there is a higher population of dairy cows. High energy maize silage is a valuable crop to sustain milk production during the winter months when cat-tle are housed indoors. With advances in varie-

ty selection, more hardy types are able to be grown further north. Areas as far north as the River Humber can now take advantage of the high yielding forage crop.

The high yield and energy has also made it a popular crop for anaerobic digestion plants,

producing electricity from green crops and

waste.

Sown in April and May and harvested from September, maize is fast growing with a high demand for nitrogen. This makes it a useful crop to follow applications of farm manure or livestock in the field such as outdoor pigs. The

crop is grown in wide rows which creates large areas of exposed soil potentially raising the risk of soil erosion. It is often grown continu-ously on the same land so soil remains bare for lengthy periods. Best practice says that a green plant cover should be present during the un-cropped period. Some famers will establish

plants between the maize rows to reduce the likelihood of soil erosion. Rob Holland

By spring 2017 three new storage tanks will be built in Southend. The tanks will reduce CSO spill fre-quency and intensity that could impact on 8 local bathing waters.

By modeling various scenarios it was found that these locations spill too frequently and that storage was required in order to reduce wet weather spills.

The tanks are being built at Riviera Drive, Wood-grange Road and there is also a flow diversion at Southchurch Road.

Barhale are delivering the scheme.

Jenny Cooper

Nearly 60 long and short sea outfalls are being inspected by DiveTech over this AMP. The in-spections are to ensure that the outfalls have no defects which could mean that effluent is

escaping before the consented discharge point. This could impact on nearby bathing water quality. DiveTech are also checking for any health and safety risks.

Remedial work is being identified and will be escalated for inclusion in the next AMP’s fund-ing, or before if found to be urgent.

Jenny Cooper

There are lots of pipes under our feet. Highway drainage systems are the responsibility of the Local Authority. Their purpose is to remove surface water from the car-riageway to prevent flooding and the deterioration of the

road surface, both of which can be hazardous to road users.

A highway drainage system consists of a number of gully pots at the edge of the carriageway which are linked through lateral connections to the main highway drain.

Usually this is under the centre of carriageway. Highway drains are easy to identify. Each gully pot will have ei-

ther a ‘grating’ on top or an ‘open inlet’ set within the kerb.

Highway drains connect to and discharge into surface water sewers. These are the responsibly of sewage un-dertakers such as Anglian Water. Surface water sewers discharge untreated water into water bodies such as riv-

ers or bathing waters.

Unwanted pollutants like dog faeces (or even roast pota-toes as we have found at one location!) that enter high-way drains pose a risk to bathing water quality as they support elevated levels of bacteria. In Clacton, we have

painted blue crabs near each highway drain with the support of Essex Highways to remind everyone that

highway drains are just for rain, they are ‘rain drains’!

Jo Matthews

National Farm Management Conference London 26 Nov

Crop Tech Peterborough 29/30 Nov

What’s on… (click for details )

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Environment

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Blog

During November, late drilled cereal crops will be rolled. This provides a reliable way of controlling slugs and prevents them from moving along the drill lines eating the young crop. Slugs can cause significant

damage to cereals, especially where the crop follows oilseed rape.

Winter wheat will be sprayed with herbicide to control broadleaved and other grass weeds. Working with farmers and agronomists the Catchment Advisors can assist in helping to reduce the rate of applied pesti-

cides.

Fertiliser for next years crops is now being delivered. Fertiliser manufacture is energy intensive and fertiliser costs are closely correlated with the energy market in general.

What are we up too?

SuDS

In Mid October we attended a SuDS (Sustainable Drainage Systems) meeting to discuss how we can work in partnership to reduce surface water pres-sure on sewer networks. Partners need to approach

AW with project ambitions that align to priority are-as as AW has funding that can be accessed. Lead local flood authorities need to be engaged directly by catchment partnerships as a first step in project development. Wider questions were also raised around how AW can best incentivise customers to generate less used water from their houses.

Martin Bowes

Worm Counting!

This autumn we have been doing worm counts in

farm-based demonstrations of cover crops around the region. The trials are farmer-led and under-pinned by specialists from Kings Seeds (part of the agronomy company Frontier). Cover crops are a key part of our nitrate leaching mitigation strategy, so we were very pleased to be able to add to the agro-nomic measurements already being made. The

worm counts will be repeated in spring and autumn 2017.

Worms are a key indicator for soil health, and they have also been shown to improve crop growth

where soil nitrogen availability is low. With soil health rising steadily up farmers’ priority list, the worm counts allow this key aspect to be demon-

strated.

We are also monitoring the soil structure in the fields. This has big consequences for water manage-ment and therefore both recharge, and the sedi-ment, phosphorus and pesticides that get washed into water bodies via excessive runoff.

Fiona Wood

At this time of year farmers are protecting freshly drilled and germinating crops from slugs. The majori-ty of farmers apply slug pellets via spreaders similar

to the one photographed. It’s very important to en-

sure these are calibrated. As each brand of pellets have unique characteristics (size, strength, weight) affecting spreadability, applicators need to be adjust-ed or set to be confident pellets are only landing on

the cropped area and in the quantity required. Gary Hodgetts

Weather Stations We have been working with Agrii and have recently installed four weather stations in the

Slug It Out (SiO) catchments. The data gath-ered will be available to SiO farmers and AW to improve knowledge and the proactive man-agement of target pesticides.

Weather Station