Who We Are
The Wye & Usk Foundation is a registered charity (no. 1080319) concerned with ecology and more specifically, restoring the habitat, water quality and fisheries of the rivers Wye and Usk.
We are the largest rivers’ trust in England and Wales in terms of output and a leader in our field, developing new techniques and delivering improvements for the aquatic environment.
Background
The Foundation was formed in 1995 due to the alarming decline in Atlantic salmon and that very little was being done to address the serious problems facing the rivers Wye and Usk. Since then, we have worked with a range of partners and the wider public in a series of projects to remedy these issues. This has been to the benefit a wide range of flora and fauna, along with local communities and the economy.
Our Work
We are much more than just a lobbying charity. First and foremost, we are a “doing” organisation with track record in delivering results for the environment. Broadly speaking, our work can be divided into three categories:
Environment
Through a series of partnership projects, we remedy problems affecting the two rivers such as habitat degradation, poor water quality and diffuse pollution, over-abstraction, barriers to fish migration and over-exploitation of our fisheries.
Education
We also deliver environmental learning opportunities about rivers across the Wye and Usk catchment areas.
Economics
We bring the economic benefits of our environmental work to local communities. This last element of our work is delivered through what we call The Fishing Passport.
Our Objectives
The Wye & Usk Foundation’s Two Charitable Objects Are:
1.
To conserve and maintain, protect, restore and improve the environments and habitats of the rivers Wye and Usk, their entire catchments, tributaries, watercourses and estuaries, including the Severn Estuary, together with their fish species especially salmon and other indigenous species of animal and plant life.
2.
To advance education in the conservation of rivers, river catchments and their animal and plant life and the need for conservation, protection, restoration and improvement of such environments for the wellbeing of future generations.
Why Does Our Work Matter?
To those with an interest in the rivers, the answer is obvious.
Yet all of society benefits from clean, healthy rivers that function in a natural way. Quite simply, there are no losers.
And the advantages of keeping rivers in good condition are felt far beyond those that live next to or frequent them.
Just one example is our water bills. Water companies spend millions of pounds a year removing pollutants from the water they take from rivers. Customers, of course, pay for this ultimately but preventing pollution happening in the first places is a far cheaper way of dealing with the problem.
So even if you couldn’t care less about the aquatic environment, it’s important to remember that dirty rivers in poor condition cost you money.
Help Us Achieve Our Objectives
This work is entirely dependent on your support. Without it our rivers would be in the sorry state we found them in 1995. We hope you agree that restoring and protecting these precious two rivers is a worthy cause.
