A PEBBLE-funded team from our Cambridge region will feature on BBC Countryfile.

The Cam Valley Forum was awarded £4,385 earlier this year from our Cambridge region's PEBBLE fund, to support its work in eradicating Floating Pennywort from the Upper Cam river.

Floating Pennywort grows as a dense tangle of plants, blocking sunlight from getting into the river, impacting native wildlife and also making stretches of the river impassable for recreational activities such as fishing, punting and boating.

Cam Valley Forum’s work was also funded and supported by eight other organisations, including the Environment Agency. The funds enabled the project team to remove large clumps of Pennywort from the river and clear overhanging trees, to prevent the Floating Pennywort becoming tangled in the drooping branches.

As a result, the upper river is now virtually clear of Floating Pennywort. Several areas have now been made into habitat refuges for birds such as moorhens and dabchicks, as well as providing shelter for fish.

Their work has now come to the attention of BBC Countryfile and on 25 October the team were filmed showing the Countryfile presenter (Sean Fletcher) how they tackle Floating Pennywort.

Anne Miller from Cam Valley Forum said:

“We’re excited about the opportunity to show what we’ve done and spread the word about the importance of people recognising Floating Pennywort and tackling it before it completely clogs the rivers they love.”

The programme will be shown on BBC 1 on Sunday 18 November.

Read more about the Cam Valley Forum project on the Cambridge Water website.

PEBBLE fund

PEBBLE is a fund created to actively encourage and enhance biodiversity in the local environment...