Love Your River Stour

Our Love Your River Stour project is continuing onto its next phase (read more on our website - link below) and from Friday 31 March we'll no longer be posting to this page. Please follow The Wildlife Trust for Birmingham and the Black Country for updates instead.

Thank you for supporting us!

https://bbcwildlife.org.uk/news/good-news-river-stour

Together with our volunteers, we’re helping to clean up the River Stour as best we can to improve conditions for the species that live in and around it. The river is still suffering the effects of pollution from its industrial past, and human activity continues to decrease the quality of the water.

If you’re concerned about leaks or spot any pollution issues, please report them to Severn Trent here: https://www.stwater.co.uk/news/news-releases/severn-trent-needs-your-help--to-report-leaks-/

Our campaign aims to tackle just one of the issues we can all alter our habits to change.

Billy the bathroom bin was sad. He loved helping his family keep the River Stour clean and prevent blockages by holding all the items that shouldn’t be flushed down the toilet, but they rarely used him because they assumed once something had been flushed away it had gone and would be someone else’s problem to sort.

‘If only they followed the campaign’ sobbed Billy.

But it’s only one baby wipe!”

There are 1.149 million people in Birmingham and 1.147 million in the Black Country, so if we all flush things we shouldn’t down the loo our regions ends up with a HUGE problem.

We can all do our bit to help the river, and by making a simple change to dispose of sanitary items, baby wipes, nappies and more in household rubbish we can collectively support our campaign.

Do you follow The Wildlife Trust for Birmingham and the Black Country on social media? That's where you can hear all the news from our projects.

You can also sign up for email updates:
📧 https://www.bbcwildlife.org.uk/lyrssignup

If unsuitable items are flushed down the toilet, the system is unable to cope. This leads to costly and disruptive repairs, during which time water companies are permitted to discharge raw sewage directly into the watercourse. Not a nice thought, is it? That’s why we’re asking everyone to

You wouldn’t throw rubbish into the river, right? If the wrong items are put down the loo they can end up in the River Stour, so we ask you to remember that only the 4Ps - (toilet) paper, p*e, puke and poo - should be flushed otherwise we’ll always have a riffy river.

It is sometimes necessary for water companies to release sewage into the River Stour when systems become overwhelmed. This leads to fish die off because:
- It increases algal growth which reduces oxygen levels, leading to suffocation
- They can be poisoned by the ammonia and nitrates in raw sewage

Wildlife needs clean, oxygenated water to thrive, so sewage discharged into our region’s waterways is bad news for the reasons listed below.

Raw sewage also contains microplastics. Fish and other species that live in the rivers and oceans eat it, believing it to be food. Their intestinal tracts become blocked, and they can starve through their stomachs filling. If they are eaten by other species, it is transferred through the food chain.

to help us save our waterways and protect the precious ecosystems and wildlife that calls the River Stour home.

You can keep up to date with news from across The Wildlife Trust for Birmingham and the Black Country by following them on social media or signing up for email newsletters here: https://www.bbcwildlife.org.uk/lyrssignup

Blocked noses, traffic jams, paper jams…they’re all really irritating, aren’t they?

Blocked toilets are the same, and wouldn’t it be just your luck if it happened when no plumbers were available and payday’s a long way off so you’re a bit short of cash. It would be even worse if your toilet overflowed – the smell, mess, bacteria, germs and viruses don’t bear thinking about.

To find out how you can help keep by river clean by preventing blocked toilets, search through our posts.

Not sure whether something is flushable? Remember - when in doubt, chuck it out!

Here are some of the things you must never flush, the most common problem-causing items being sanitary products, nappies and baby wipes.

But what if the package claims they’re flushable? Even if products claim to be suitable for disposal via flushing, most take so long to degrade that they cause issues. They also contain chemicals and/or microplastics that can get into the river and harm the watercourse.

The answers from the first part of our survey have been analysed. Here are some of the key statistics:

👉 Over 65% of respondents told us that the main reason they access the river is for exercise and over 47% of respondents told us they access the river to immerse themselves in nature

👉 86% of respondents feel that their local river and streams should be protected, and 84.5% feel they are an important part of local history

👉 Litter, fly tipping and pollution were highlighted as the top three issues respondents felt were most impacting upon the river, with 72% of respondents noticing these issues personally

👉 Two of the key species this project focuses on are salmon and otter and sadly less than 0.5% of respondents reported seeing salmon in the river and less than 6% had seen otter on the river. However other species were reported to be regularly seen on the river with the top three being heron (seen by 58% of respondents), dragonflies (seen by 53% of respondents) and kingfisher (seen by 45% of respondents)

👉 Almost 60% of respondents told us that they are interested in practical volunteering on the river to support the project. You can find out more about volunteering with us here: https://www.bbcwildlife.org.uk/volunteer

Out of sight, out of mind…right? Wrong!

Even though items may look like they’ve been flushed away, they can cause blockages and overwhelm systems:

👉 Blockages: Non-natural items can cause pipes to block and/or become damaged, meaning waste must find an alternative route. Homeowners are generally responsible for drains inside the boundaries of their property, and getting issues sorted can be a real headache. Your washing machine, dishwasher, toilet, sinks and showers may also be unavailable until the blockage has been removed. If that sounds like a hassle you could do without, take note of the 4Ps rule on what you should flush.

👉 Overwhelmed systems: Raw sewage is discharged into rivers when systems become overwhelmed, and the likelihood of overwhelm is higher when incorrect items are flushed as they decrease capacity in storage tanks.

We're looking for volunteers to help us increase biodiversity on our tree planting day at Seth Somers Park. We'll be planting a new hedgerow using native species which will provide food and shelter for mammals, birds, insects and more.

Date: Saturday 11 March 2023
Time: 10am-3pm (don't worry if you can only join us for part of the day)
Location: Seth Somers Park, Dogkennel Lane, Halesowen B63 3EG

Find out more here:
https://bbcwildlife.us17.list-manage.com/track/click?u=9f7b04dc8d36dae494b1acc65&id=f407ff82a2&e=b4cddb90b3

Our Co-op Community Fund total is creeping slowly towards our next milestone of £400. Thank you to everyone who has chosen us as their cause so far. We're really grateful for your support!

If you're a Co-op member, you can help us by logging in and selecting us here: https://membership.coop.co.uk/causes/73567

If you're not a member, you can join here and support us every time you shop: coop.co.uk/membership

Our latest blog explores the past, present and future of the River Stour. We begin with its role in our region's industrial heritage, talk about its current condition and finally our hopes to restore it to as close to its natural condition as possible.

Read it here: https://www.bbcwildlife.org.uk/blog/james-benwell/past-present-and-future-river-stour

Our Tool Use training is free for anyone aged 16-25 with a Wolverhampton postcode.

It's suitable for anyone considering a career in conservation or hoping to gain experience using tools and carrying out practical work.

Find out more here: https://www.bbcwildlife.org.uk/events/2023-02-27-tools-use-ocn-level-1-training-course-wolverhampton

Our brand-new downloadable resources are on our website now! They're packed full of information to help you learn more about the River Stour and what you can do to keep it healthy.

Check them out here: https://www.bbcwildlife.org.uk/LoveYourRiverStour

We're delighted to share that we've received a Community Green Grant from West Midlands Combined Authority, totalling £100,000.

The money will enable us to restore a two-kilometre stretch of the River Stour running through Cradley Heath and Lye.

We plan to use the funding to:

- Restore a further 3.5 hectares of ancient woodlands along the river
- Enhance eight hectares of plantation and other woodlands
- Tackle pollution by removing man-made barriers and re-naturalising the river
- Create a hectare of species-rich grassland
- Improve public access

We will also run community engagement activities and volunteer days for local people and provide 24 young people with the opportunity to train in environmental restoration.

Find out more here: https://www.bbcwildlife.org.uk/news/good-news-river-stour

The photo below shows (L-R):
- Kasia Kordybacha, River Engagement Officer
- David Howard, River Restoration Officer
- Sally Clague, Senior River Restoration Officer
- Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands and WMCA chair
- Cllr Laura Rollins, Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council's cabinet member for leisure and tourism

Love Your River Stour added a button to help you learn more about them.

We will be undertaking woodland management works which will include thinning of the trees and removal of some non-native species at both Smestow Valley LNR, Wolverhampton, and Stambermill, Stourbridge. Work will begin this week and take place over the next couple of weeks.

The works will allow existing trees to mature and grow into extra space, allowing more light for the woodland flora and making it more suitable for native ground flora such as bluebell, primrose and garlic.

We will also be planting more ground flora into these areas once the felling works have been completed. There will be signs where we'll be working, but please keep a safe distance from these areas..

Here's David with some plastic he safely and carefully pulled out of the river. We regularly retrieve all sorts of rubbish in and around the Stour. Not only does it looks unsightly, but it can seriously harm the watercourse and the species it supports. It can also get washed out to sea and harm marine life.

We ask everyone enjoying the areas around the river to please take their rubbish with them, either for recycling where possible or for putting in household rubbish or litter bins. Please also report any flytipping to the council.

How's this for a tranquil view? The team took this piccy as they were heading home from a day of seed scattering. Have you got a favourite view or place in our region?

Ta-dah! We've just put the finishing touches to three new educational flyers and we couldn't wait to share a sneak preview! They'll be available to download on our website very soon, so look out for links on here in the coming days.

This is a common polypody, a fern that can grow in damp woodlands as an 'epiphyte.' An epiphyte is a plant that grows on another plant, in this case a tree.

The first stage of our survey is now closed, so we'd like to say a HUGE thank you to everyone who completed it. We had a good number of respondents and we look forward to sharing the results with you.

We plan to create a second survey in March, so if you completed our first phase please look out for an email from us about that.

The Wildlife Trust for Birmingham and the Black Country

A HUGE thank you to the Co-op members who have kindly chosen to support us so far. We're steadily climbing to £300 already which is really exciting!

If you'd like to help us reach our next milestone...

Co-op members can log in and select us as your chosen cause here: https://membership.coop.co.uk/causes/73567

If you're not a member yet but would like to be, you can find out how you can join and help us here: coop.co.uk/membership

There are just a few days until our survey closes on 31st December, so make sure you don't miss your chance to share your thoughts and be in with a chance of winning a fab-u-lous goody bag!

https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/XZ38WKK

Complete our short survey and you'll go into a draw to win a Wildlife Trust goody bag worth over £45! The lucky winner's prize include books so you can expand your flora and fauna species knowledge, and wildflower seeds so you can create your very own habitat.

Take the survey here: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/XZ38WKK

As the stats below show, it’s been a fantastic year! We'd like to thank all of our volunteers and those who have been involved in the project for their hard work.

We'll be back on-site and holding events and training courses in the new year, so we hope to see you then.

In the meantime, have a wonderful Christmas and best wishes for 2023!

Complete our short survey and you'll go into a draw to win a Wildlife Trust goody bag worth over £45! The lucky winner's prize include books so you can expand your flora and fauna species knowledge, and wildflower seeds so you can create your very own habitat.

Take the survey here: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/XZ38WKK

We've been busy coppicing at Stambermill. This traditional woodland management technique involves cutting back shrubs and trees to stimulate more vigorous regrowth.

You've got until the end of this month to complete our short survey, so don't miss your chance!

Not only will your answers help us understand if and how you connect with your local river and streams, you can give your your opinion on environmental issues affecting the area and be in with a chance of winning a goody bag worth over £45!

Take the survey here: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/XZ38WKK

UK Charity Week draws to a close this week with Volunteers Day, so we'd like to thank our army of volunteers who get stuck in come rain or shine to help with our vital conservation work. Thank you all!

If you're off to the Co-op Christmas shopping this weekend, please consider choosing us as your cause to help us raise money to create wetland and woodland habitats around the River Stour, making homes for many species and helping to store carbon in the fight against climate change.

If you're already a member, you can log in and select us as your chosen cause here: https://membership.coop.co.uk/causes/73567

If you're not a member, you can find out how to join here: coop.co.uk/membership

Our students and volunteers found these fungi species at Stambermill this week.

Parrot waxcap comes in a variety of colours. They have a slimy surface and can usually be found on unimproved grassland where they can be left undisturbed.

The caps of the rosy bonnet vary from white to deep pink. They can be found in deep leaf litter surrounding deciduous trees, especially beech.