Protecting & Improving the Whistle Brook – We Need Your Help

We are all fortunate enough to live in a green and pleasant land.  We are on the fringes of chalk hills, surrounded by farmland and close to ancient woods.

The babbling brook is an integral part of this landscape.  Locally the most significant of these is the Whistle Brook, which in our immediate area is the boundary between the parishes of Pitstone and Ivinghoe. Further downstream it runs through Slapton Parish and ultimately into the River Ouse.  It lends its name to our local school, powers the Watermill, we walk beside it, cross it, play in it and many use it for trout fishing.

The Whistle Brook is particularly special as it is a Chalk Stream.  Chalk Streams are recognised internationally as being ecologically important habitats by organisations such as the WWF.  They are also rare, with only around 250 recognised globally. 80% of them are in England.  So the Whistle Brook is not just locally important, it is internationally important.

Unfortunately, we English have not been looking after our Chalk Streams well and they are generally in a poor state in this country.  Something that has often been highlighted nationally on programs like Countryfile.  A recent housing development plan submitted to Bucks Council indicated the ecology of the Whistle Brook would be reduced, but there are many other local threats. As such, we are not immune to the harm being caused to them.  Governmental and regional organisations have developed plans to improve them, such as DEFRA and the Chiltern Society, so there are plans to turn this around.

The first stage to managing, protecting and improving any habitat is to determine what its current condition is.  Something that we have discussed at Pitstone Parish Council and subsequentially I have attended meetings at Ivinghoe and Slapton Parish Councils to discuss this further with an idea as to how to do this.  The idea is to establish a group of volunteers to start regularly monitoring the streams water quality.  The simplest way to do this is to carry out regular kick sampling surveys down the length of the Whistle Brook.  The data will then be fed into a national data base so it can be monitored.  A model that has been followed successfully for many years elsewhere such as along the Ver in St.Albans.

This will require a group a us locals to do this and we estimate something between 8-12 across the three Parishes would be ideal.  We already have quite a few people interested, but yes, this is a shout out to anyone interested in getting involved.  We will need to work in pairs, with each pair covering two or three locations on a monthly basis.  We have identified an organisation that will provide training and equipment.  So if this is something you think you would be interested in getting involved with or know someone who would, please get in contact.  The next stage is for that group to meet to discuss the idea, convert it into a plan and then into action; it has been suggested by one of the Slapton Parish Councillors this is at the Rose and Crown if that helps to persuade you…

Cllr Dr. David Frearson

Email: parishclerk@pitstone.co.uk or dave.frearson@pitstonepc.org

Tel: 01296 767261

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