The final report of a council inquiry, tasked with examining ‘Protecting, Preserving and Promoting the River Itchen’, comes under scrutiny at a city council meeting on Thursday (June 8).
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As previously reported, the inquiry panel heard evidence over six sessions from a wide variety of organisations, including voluntary and recreational groups who use the river.
Some of the themes of the report, and conclusions, are:
- Management and partnership working to “facilitate improved outcomes”
- Improving the health and resilience of the river, to “move it closer to a Water Framework Directive Ecological Status rating of high” – including encouraging Southern Water to provide “real time information about pollution events”, and supporting groups campaigning for Designated Bathing Water Status
- Increasing the “vibrancy” of the River, including the support of a “design led waterfront” and enabling access for watercraft
- Meeting the “aspirations of residents for enhanced public access to the waterfront”
Southampton City Council’s Overview and Scrutiny Management Committee will consider the final report, before it makes its way upstream to the council’s executive for consideration. And action.
You can download the final report, and conclusions and recommendations of the panel, from this SCC page (item 9), where there’s also a link to watch the meeting. It takes place from 5.30pm.
➡ In related news the Friends of the Itchen Estuary report on their Facebook group: “Results from our last, independent lab verified, E Coli sampling revealed even higher levels than the previous sampling - 1300 cfu / 100 ml upstream (opposite the University Boat Club) and 5600 cfu / 100 ml downstream next to St Denys Boat Club. Note: 900 cfu / 100 ml is the upper limit for EA 'satisfactory' bathing water quality rating.” More detail in this post.