EMS and In-Situ Environmental assist with Severn Trent’s Green Recovery: Bathing Rivers Programme
EMS and In-Situ Environmental contributed to Severn Trent’s Bathing Rivers Programme by providing near real-time monitoring data which supported Severn Trent in making targeted investments to improve river ecology and benefit river users such as swimmers, boaters, and fishermen.
The Client
Severn Trent is improving more than 50km of river in Warwickshire and Shropshire. It will help move two stretches – on the Leam and Teme – towards bathing quality by 2025, and make wider improvements to the river Avon.
Along with setting up monitoring systems that supply near real-time data about the quality of the river water, Severn Trent are:
- Collaborating with others to deliver catchment management interventions to reduce run off and animal faecal pollution.
- Creating an online forecasting tool that provides river water quality status information to support community engagement.
- Partnering with local communities to promote pride in their rivers, fostering behaviour change, and increasing social cohesion.
- Significantly reducing the frequency and impact of storm overflows.
- Improving effluent quality by installing pioneering new technologies on their wastewater treatment sites.
The Challenges
EMS were commissioned by Severn Trent Water to install and maintain a network of monitoring stations that supply near real-time data about the quality of the river water.
The Solution
EMS successfully monitored 78 sites along the River Leam and River Teme and used In-Situ’s Aqua TROLL 500 multiparameter sondes to record pH, temperature, conductivity dissolved oxygen, ammonia, and water depth. In addition, In-Situ’s VuLink® data logger facilitated remote telemetry and data transmission. The data was available in near real-time via EMS’s data acquisition system, eDAS®. This technology allows for both on site and remote visualisation of environmental performance data and reliably supports environmental compliance through collating, centralising, and presenting monitoring data on an easy to access dashboard.
For optimal performance, EMS conducted proactive maintenance every two weeks, which included cleaning and calibration of the monitoring equipment. EMS also promptly addressed any operational issues with reactive maintenance visits which were identified through daily data analysis of every monitoring site.
The collaboration between EMS and In-Situ enabled Severn Trent to prioritise targeted investments to improve river water quality for the benefit of river user activities, including swimming, boating, and fishing. By consistently monitoring the river water quality and promptly addressing any issues, Severn Trent could make informed decisions to enhance the health of the rivers and provide a better experience for those who enjoy them.
Testimonial
We received a query from a key stakeholder about a number of dead fish they noticed in the river near their property following some severe flash flooding. We were able to interrogate eDAS® to check the monitor nearest to the location and found that on the relevant dates there had been very hot weather all of the previous week, followed by thunderstorms which caused surface contaminant run off to enter the watercourse as diffuse pollution. Dissolved oxygen levels of less than 2mg/L is considered dangerous to aquatic life and the DO drop on these dates was considerable. It was a quick and easy check on eDAS® and we were able to respond to our stakeholder straightaway.
— Lesley Parker, Project and Change Manager for Bathing Waters - Severn Trent Water
