Environment Agency

The Environment Agency is 'the leading public body for protecting and improving the environment in England and Wales', with responsiblity for air quality, conservation and ecology, especially along rivers and in wetlands, water quality, resources and fishing, and waste disposal. It is a non-departmental public body sponsored largely by the Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) and the National Assembly for Wales (NAW).

North East Regional office

In Wharfedale the Agency is involved with conservation and ecology and sees its role as helping to create an environment where wildlife can thrive, especially along rivers and in wetlands. It has carried out surveys, including the Otter Survey and the River Habitat Survey of England and Wales, whose results are presented on 'Riverside Explorer', an educational CD-Rom. It has also managed a conference on 'Management and Conservation of Crayfish', a species of local and national concern, in 2002. During the summer of 2003 the Agency carried out a survey to assess the current status of fish stocks throughout North Yorkshire.

Otter Survey of England 2000-2002
Otter Survey North East region

The River Wharfe is extensively used for public water supply, both from reservoirs and by river abstraction.At the same time, the Wharfe and its tributaries are highly valued for nature conservation, ecology, landscape and recreational opportunities, including high class game and coarse fisheries. Changing climate patterns may increase the pressure for water abstraction, with its effects on riverine wildlife. Managing these, sometimes conflicting, requirements involves the Catchment Abstraction Management Strategy, which affects part of the Wharfedale Naturalists Society area.

Wharfe and Lower Ouse Catchment Abstraction Management Strategy

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