Marching today for a better tomorrow
By Alice Russell, Account Director
Just a few years ago, water pollution was rarely mentioned in the media and wasn’t described as a public priority. Yet in a short space of time, it has come to dominate the political, public and media agenda. This shift couldn’t be better represented by the ‘March for Clean Water’ last Sunday. 15,000 people peacefully marched on the streets of London, all dressed in blue, with one simple ask for Government and industry – stop poisoning Britain’s rivers.
This much-needed increase in attention is primarily thanks to the hard work of charities and campaigners, who have tirelessly collected water samples to show the true pollution in our rivers, working to influence legislation and leading a whole host of work that has been going on behind the scenes.
One of the organisations that spearheaded the charge is River Action, the main organiser of the March for Clean Water. I’ve had the pleasure of working with River Action from its inception by founder, Charles Watson, to the fully-fledged charity it is today, bringing together thousands of people around a shared mission.
Almost four years ago when River Action was set up, the focus for the first year was bringing attention to the damage being done to the iconic River Wye by big agribusinesses. It sought to coordinate the calls of local groups who had been raising the alarm for years to the media and policymakers. We launched with coverage in the Guardian, a starting-gun for the non-stop campaigning and media efforts over the past few years. The March for Clean Water was the culmination of these efforts, with coverage across all national news channels, from the BBC, Channel 4, ITV and more – practically unheard of for an environmental issue.
From the Wye to Westminster, we’ve worked with River Action to campaign across agriculture, sewage, water scarcity and more. Though initially, political action and response had been lacklustre, the public’s anger around water, in particular sewage, and the prominence of this discontent in the general election campaign has completely shifted the landscape.
Labour made water a priority issue in its manifesto, promising to put failing water companies under special measures, give regulators powers to block bonuses and convict water company bosses. The Government has kept water pollution at the top of the environment agenda with actions including a Water (Special Measures) Bill and the launch of an Independent Commission into the water sector.
But these measures are still narrow in scope with a primary focus on water companies and sewage. The role of water companies in polluting our waters has been dominating the media, but it’s not the only (or even the biggest) source of pollution. Agriculture, chemical, road run off and other sources can’t be overlooked. While there has been some recognition of the need to tackle agriculture pollution, it has received barely any of the same media or political attention.
Since starting at Seahorse, water pollution has been the issue I’ve been working on for the longest. Seeing thousands of people come together last week to show support for cleaner waters was a truly special moment. There was no lack of creativity or inspiration, from the all blue costumes and ‘punny’ placards, to guest appearances from the Wombles, a special performance of ‘The Water’ from Johnny Flynn, and rallying cries from youth campaigners like Aneeshwar Kunchala.
At Seahorse, we spend a lot of our time often working behind the scenes on select committee submissions, MP briefings, parliamentary questions and Bill amendments. While these are all a key part of the political engagement process, getting out onto the streets of London to see real people coalescing around this issue was a real moment of inspiration to spur us on in our daily work.
Although the placards have now been swapped out for Water Bill briefings, the momentum is still there and is just building. Particularly as the Water Bill heads through the House of Lords and into the House of Commons, the Government and MPs have an opportunity to reflect on this public cry for action and set us on an ambitious path to a future full of abundant, clean and healthy water.