Tyne, Esk & East Lothian Coastal Water Rural Diffuse Pollution Priority Catchment – Event Summary

East Lothian Diffuse Pollution Priority Catchment

On the 13^th of February the Farm Advisory Service held a meeting at the Maitlandfield Hotel in Haddington.  Over 30 people attended to hear about the new East Lothian Priority Catchment.

The East Lothian Priority Catchment is now one of 43 priority catchments in Scotland. Wull Dryburgh from SEPA gave a presentation highlighting why priority catchments had been designated and what to expect from a farm visit . SAC Consulting staff Donald Dunbar and Chris McDonald spoke about implications to the farm, practical ways of addressing diffuse pollution issues and funding opportunities e.g. Agri-Environment Climate Scheme.

Farming & Water Scotland demonstrated examples of alternative watering devices and also provided technical notes on how to create abstraction points.

Take home messages

• The priority catchment includes land in the Lothians within the Rivers Tyne and Esk catchment as well as farms in the East Lothian Coastal area.
• SEPA staff will contact farmers in thecatchment to undertake a farm visit
• If you think you may have issues which can be rectified through the agri environmental climate scheme, book a visit with SEPA now to highlight issues, before the deadline passes
• Diffuse pollution isn’t just bad for the environment its bad for business
• Visit the Farming & Water Scotland website for advice on reducing diffuse pollution on the farm

Technical Notes available at the meeting and related information is available to download through the links below.