Farmers from the Pelcomb Brook and Winterton Marsh river catchments enjoyed a very informative visit to Bolton Hill Water Treatment Works.
Dwr Cymru Welsh Water want to work in partnership with farmers to improve raw drinking water quality. Therefore, working in conjunction with the BRICs project, to help achieve this goal, all farmers in Pelcomb Brook and Winterton Marsh river catchment areas were invited to visit their Bolton Hill Water Treatment Works.
Knowledgeable operational staff accompanied farmers around the site. They explained all the different stages in the treatment process from raw water abstraction through to fully treated water for distribution to both domestic and commercial consumers. Attendees knowledge of chemistry and physics was put to the test but all left much better informed with an improved understanding of how some agricultural practices can impact upon the treatment process and make it more difficult to turn water from drinking water rivers into perfect drinking water.
BRICs is a research project that is taking an innovative approach to managing natural resources in the area, benefitting both communities and businesses in the locality.
The project partners include supply chain, land managers, industry, conservation organisations, farming unions, Welsh Water, farming cooperatives, authorities, Natural Resources Wales and communities working together to build resilience into farm businesses. At the same time, the project will be contributing to sustainable economic development.
BRICS was developed and is funded through the Sustainable Management Scheme which is part of the Welsh Government Rural Communities – Rural Development Programme 2014-2020, funded by the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development and the Welsh Government.