"Concerns over the health of the River Stour has once again been raised amid concerns its ecosystem and wildlife are under threat due to an increase in household demand for water.
The river, which starts near Ashford, runs through Canterbury before flowing into the English Channel at Pegwell Bay.
According to campaigners, it is one of the rivers under threat due to increasing development putting a strain on supplies.
Now the Our Rivers campaign, backed by the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), is calling on the Government to take action on the rivers in England and Wales that are threatened.
Pressure on the Stour is intensifying due to developments – particularly in areas earmarked for considerable growth such as Ashford.
Due to their clear waters and relatively stable temperature and flow regimes, chalk rivers provide a unique kind of habitat that is important for species such as white-cawed crayfish, otters, brown trout and the UK’s fastest declining mammal, the water vole.
Steve Gilbert of the RSPB South East said: "Preserving Kent’s chalk rivers, for people and for wildlife, will depend upon a number of measures, one of which is to reduce water abstraction to restore some of the natural flow.
"Water taken from rivers in Kent is consumed by a vast number of people and the problems caused by over-abstraction will only get worse as demand increases in developing areas.
"The Our Rivers campaign isn’t about blaming one company or user group, but calling on the Government to act quickly on the results of its own research and tackle the issue head-on.
"It has already identified 148 rivers where over-abstraction is damaging rivers and the wildlife they support, but there has been no action to reduce the amount of water taken."
The Wild Trout Trust is also backing the campaign because the fresh water and migrating sea trout populations in the Stour are threatened with extinction if their habitats are not protected.
The trust’s conservation officer Andy Thomas said: "There are several implications if over-abstraction does occur in rivers such as the Stour.
"Firstly, the stream can be heavily impacted by low flow.
"This affects the migration of the trout and can delay them, meaning they are more prone to being eaten by predators and they are more likely to be stressed and prone to disease.
"Secondly, there is the issue of climate change and its impact.
"Water temperature can increase due to the reduced surface area of the river, which will dramatically affect the river ecosystem.
"Most natural rivers are climate proof, but more urban and managed rivers like the Stour are more likely to see the affects of climate change, and coupled with the low flow, these temperatures are more likely to increase.
"This can be lethal to the fish."
South East Water, which controls water and waste management throughout most of Kent, says it is keen to protect our county’s water resources.
A spokesman said: "We generally don’t take water from rivers but the only one we do take a small amount from is the Thames.
"We don’t extract from the Stour and we are very environmentally minded.
"Each day, South East Water takes more than 565 million litres of water from the environment and supplies it to around 2.1 million customers in the South East.
"This water is taken principally from underground aquifers, but also from rivers and surface reservoirs, within strict limits set by the Environment Agency."
The key to protecting the river ecosystems and the wildlife that depends on them is, according the Wild Trout Trust and the Our River campaign, to improve legislation to prevent over abstraction occurring.
Mr Thomas added: "The Environment Agency is key.
"They have a tough role dealing with abstraction and waste management, but it is their duty to help protect them.
"Trout are a fantastic indicator species and they show good water quality.
"If we can keep trout in rivers such as the Stour, it shows that we have got good water quality and a good environment for wildlife."
Mr Gilbert said: "The Water White Paper must signal to water companies that it expects solutions to be included in the next round of company business plans."
