Welsh Government Responds to Archbishop’s Call to Restore Welsh Rivers

Welsh Government has responded formally to the concerns which have been raised by the Archbishop of Wales, the Most Revd Andrew John, to highlight the issue of river quality in Wales.

In November, the Archbishop convened a national summit, Restoring Welsh Rivers, hosted by the Church in Wales to draw attention to the issue. It drew together more than 90 people from across the UK, including scientists, farmers, environmentalists and water industry representatives to discuss the challenges facing watercourses in Wales and to look at ways of improving water quality.

The First Minister Eluned Morgan also attended and addressed the gathering, setting out some of the actions Welsh Government is taking to tackle the issues.

Now, Welsh Government’s Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs, Huw Irranca-Davies, has written to the Archbishop explaining the measures which are being taken to tackle the problems.

The measures include:

• Reducing intensive agriculture runoff
• Strengthening enforcement of environmental regulations
• Implementing nature-based solutions
• Adopting a catchment management approach
• Establishing a national environmental data-sharing platform

Read the full Letter from Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Climate Change and Rural Affairs, Huw Irranca-Davies (PDF).

The Church in Wales is grateful to receive such a helpful response to this pressing issue and looks forward to working with the Welsh Government, with statutory agencies, charitable partners and other stakeholders in helping restore the rivers of Wales to full health.