Utility Week

34 | OCTOBER 2021 | UTILITY WEEK Analysis Mapping a pollinator superhighway Stuart Stone talks to Yorkshire Water about its investment in pollinator superhighways and the impact they have on managing the company's water catchment areas. Y orkshire Water recently revealed that surveys are under way at six of its sites – Fewston, Swinsty, Thruscross, Emb- say, Grimwith, and Barden reservoirs – a•er they were slated to become part of a new "pollinator superhighway". This will see £30,000 jointly invested in the Bee Together project with Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust (YDMT), which has already helped to deliver projects worth approximately £30 million. The Bee Together project aims to create an unbroken, wildflower rich stretch of wildlife through both rural and urban areas with the aim of improving biodiversity and reversing the decline of wild pollinators in the region. Yasmina Gallagher, a technical specialist at Yorkshire Water, says that such conserva- tion efforts o•en go hand-in-hand with the firm's management of water catchments. According to Forest Research – the research agency of the Forestry Commission – trees and woodland are effective at inter- cepting aerial dri• of pesticides, as well as other pollutants, that would otherwise enter watercourses. Water in rivers, lakes and estuaries reflects the quality of its immediate sur- roundings, with a higher standard helping reduce the cost and environmental impact from energy use and treating water, the agency says. "Our colleagues will be volunteering their time to carry out pollinator surveys, cre- ate action plans and deliver the habitat the bees require to thrive in our area," Gallagher explains. A need for healthy, functional ecosystems The announcement of joint investment in the Bee Together project was preceded by the company sharing a series of stark images to illustrate the devastating effects of water shortages on its reservoirs, and demonstrat- ing how the region will be affected in the next 25 years if action is not taken. As reported in Utility Week at the time, the artists' impressions of what its reservoirs could look like by 2045 were commissioned to publicise the threat of water shortages a•er a survey showed that less than half its customers were concerned about shortages. According to Ben Aston, biodiversity spe- cialist at Yorkshire Water: "Part of our remit is to collect, treat and distribute a natural resource to our customers, so we are aware of the need for healthy, functional ecosystems to allow us to do this in a sustainable manner. "This project [Bee Together] is just one example, but we are delivering a large port- folio of activities such as river restoration schemes, fish passage, invasive species control, moorland restoration, farm envi- ronmental improvements etc, to ensure this continues." Protect and create pollinator habitat According to figures from the Food and Agri- cultural Organisation of the United Nations, 80 per cent of all flowering plants – includ- ing fruit, vegetables and crops that feed live- stock – are pollinated by animals, mostly insects such as bees. What's more, according to the Woodland Trust, it has been estimated that it would cost UK farmers £1.8 billion a year to manu- ally pollinate their crops, which just further emphasises the importance of bees. However, the RSPB's 2016 State of Nature report revealed that 60 per cent of bees and other pollinators are in decline. "Bees continue to face a wide range of threats, from toxic pesticides to climate change, however the most significant reason for their decline is the loss of wildflower-rich habitats," Bee Together officer Catherine Mercer explains. Making an impression: Yorkshire Water commissioned images of what its devestated reservoirs might look like in 2045 without action now

• Cover