Sometimes, being a constituency MP, you get the chance to do things that allow you to see a situation through another’s eyes. One such occasion was when some years ago a constituent Ian, suggested we walked where he had played as a boy in Fornham by the edge of the Lark. He spoke of his love of the area, its history, and the purpose of the Lark. What I got from him was his ‘need’ to do something about its distress.
I knew of the challenge having been involved since the first River Lark Catchment Partnership meeting in 2015 where the issues of water quality and paucity in our region were discussed - something that becomes ever more relevant year on year, especially as temperatures rise and rainfall diminishes.
The Lark, is one of only about 250 chalk rivers in the world, they occur mostly in England and provide clear constant water from chalk aquifers and springs. They are rare habitats and support, when healthy, a unique aquatic ecosystem. The Lark is a historically degraded river, we have not been kind over the past 100 plus years, but it is important it retains the potential to support flourishing ecology.
The reason progress has been made thus far, is thanks to the efforts of volunteers and the working partnership of all stakeholders involved in the project. The catchment spans a wide area from Bury to Mildenhall and surrounding villages so working together is vital.
I am grateful to Rebecca Pow MP, the former Environment Minister for joining us at the Fornham site earlier this month to hear about the work, the ambition and why this chalk stream is so vital. We discussed legislation that will facilitate our efforts to reduce pollution and clean up the River Lark with technology and environmental investment planning.
The four-hour meeting concluded with the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding, a crucial step in ensuring the Lark is restored to the best state possible with speed, and later I discussed with Rebecca my desire for these arteries of life in our area to carry protected status – something I intend to push for on my return to Parliament.
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