Audit reveals poor state of British ponds
23 February 2010
Just one in 10 garden ponds is fulfilling its true potential for attracting wildlife, according to the charity Pond Conservation.
Research and surveys including the group's annual Big Pond Dip, carried out by the general public, suggest just half the wildlife which could potentially use our garden ponds is able to do so. The charity's director of policy and research, Jeremy Biggs, says the rest is driven away mainly by pollution from tap water and soil run-off.
'The fundamental principle is that water can never reach its potential if it isn't right from the start,' he says. 'If you get it wrong, right from the word go you cut yourself off from half the wildlife that could live there.'
Pond Conservation has also been assessing the state of ponds in the wider countryside, along with the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, and has just published the results of the country's first-ever audit of natural ponds across the UK.
The report, carried out as part of the Defra-funded 2007 Countryside Survey, paints a gloomy picture of a habitat in serious decline, with 80 per cent of ponds in the British countryside in a 'poor' or 'very poor' condition. Intensive agriculture, shading from trees and invasive non-native plants like New Zealand pigmy weed (Crassula helmsii) were all found responsible for the 'widely degraded' state of most of our naturally-occuring ponds.
One project aiming to reverse the decline is the Million Ponds Project, set up by Pond Conservation with Amphibian and Reptile Conservation and now in its third year. The campaign provides grants for creating thousands of new clean water ponds on land owned by farmers, wildlife trusts and the Forestry Commission to offset the loss of pond habitat through pollution.
Further research into the state of our ponds is on the way as the Open Air Laboratories network (OPAL) asks for volunteers to take part in their water survey. Participants are asked to identify and count animal and plant species in local ponds or lakes and test for water clarity and acidity – all crucial indicators of water quality.
- Pictured above: Jeremy Biggs' garden pond is fed entirely by rainwater, with extensive shallows of no more than 30cm (1ft) and natural edges. It also has overhanging shrubs and three basins that separate into mini-ponds, providing a habitat for a wide range of animals.