Bikes Causing Issues To South East Water’s Woodlands & Biodiversity Enhancement Work
Those who ride motorbikes and mountain bikes along on South East Water private land in West Kent are being asked to stop as they risk contaminating the raw water the company uses to turn into fresh drinking water.
Image Photo by Wren Meinberg on Unsplash
In recent months, fly-tipping, motorsports and mountain bike riding have increased on land near Pembury. Dirt bikers have turned the site into their regular track, causing mud to seep into the nearby reservoir, disturbing ecosystems and damaging company equipment.
South East Water owns or manages 33 Sites of Special Scientific Interest, a National Nature Reserve, two local nature reserves, and numerous Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty. Protecting the environment from which water is abstracted is a crucial part of the work the business undertakes.
Projects such as coppicing to stimulate growth and reintroducing endangered species to areas where numbers are declining allow the company to give back to the environment from which it gets its water.
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South East Water's Biodiversity Manager, Richard Dyer, said: "The disruption caused by the trail bikers is having an impact on the fragile woodland ecosystems by damaging ground flora and impacting on protected species such as dormice and nesting birds, but importantly it is also affecting raw water quality by leaving the ground bare allowing rain to wash soil particles and other contaminants off into the local springs and streams. The potential for an oil or fuel spill from a motorbike contaminating the springs and streams is particularly worrying.
"The water in the reservoir is natural spring water, so it is heartbreaking that it could be polluted in such a way."
For more information on their work in the environment, visit southeastwater.co.uk/about/our-environment/
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