Improving Health of Waters in the Forth

SEPA's Brian Healey, Chair of the Forth Area Advisory Group explains the pressure currently facing the Forth waters: "The Forth includes a range of agricultural and industrial activities, and it is home to over a million people who live within 11 unitary authorities. The area provides important environmental, economic and social assets to Scotland. The industry in the Forth valley makes a significant contribution to the Scottish economy each year and along side this there are distinct areas of farming around Stirling, Fife and East Lothian. The towns and cities in the area, including Edinburgh, Stirling, Falkirk and Dunfermline, provide an increasing pressure on our environment with their continued expansion.

"The Forth Area Management Plan is supplementary to the first draft of the River Basin Management Plan for the Scotland river basin district which provides a summary of the condition of the water environment using a new classification system being applied across Europe.

"Over the last 40 years major improvements to water quality have been achieved as sources off pollution have been addressed. However, under the new classification scheme we are required to consider other impacts such as physical changes to the water environment, abstraction and impoundment pressures, barriers to fish migration and the presence of non-native species. Members of the Forth area advisory group are committed to working together to build on these previous improvements to deliver a sustainable water environment for all the people who live and work in the Forth area."

Have your say before 22 June 2009 on the Area Management Plan for the Forth. Following the publication of the draft River Basin Management Plans and Area Management Plans, two consultations 'Scotland's Water: Future Directions' and 'Restoration of the Water Environment' were launched by Environment Minister Michael Russell seeking views on further ways to make improvements over the long term in a proportionate cost effective way. These are directed at tackling issues such as diffuse pollution, invasive non-native species and the impacts of hard engineering on the water environment which are highlighted by the Forth area management plan as issues in the Forth area.