Join Big River Watch, first Ireland & UK citizen river survey

The public are asked to record observations of rivers in the Big River Watch, launched by The Rivers Trust. A new app includes questions about wildlife, signs of pollution, and the wellbeing effects of spending time around rivers.
The initiative launches on the 22nd-24th September to coincide with World Rivers Day. The survey will be open year-round and contribute to a database of river health covering Ireland and the UK.

The Rivers Trust is asking nature lovers to join the Big River Watch, the first ever UK and Ireland-wide citizen river survey.

Big River Watch, Ireland & UK citizen river survey

Between 22nd and 24th September, we’re asking people to contribute to rivers’ recovery by recording observations of their local river on a brand-new, free-to-use app. The results will form a data set on river health, the likes of which has never been created before.

Emma Brisdion, Marketing Campaigns Lead at The Rivers Trust, said: “People across the UK and Ireland care immensely about their rivers, and are rightly angry about the state they’ve been allowed to get into. The Big River Watch is all about using that connection to rivers to record the good, the bad, and the ugly so we can understand our blue spaces better and make informed decisions about how to revive them.”

The Big River Watch is open to all, with no experience or training in citizen science required. All people need to do is download the free Big River Watch app, spend 15 minutes by their local river and answer questions as prompted. We want to build a complete picture of river health, and topics covered include the plants and wildlife people can see, as well as visible signs of pollution or observations on flow levels.

From sewage, agricultural, and chemical pollution to severe habitat degradation, the issues blighting rivers in the UK and Ireland are well documented. The results of the first Big River Watch will show how these issues are impacting rivers locally, regionally, and nationally. By shedding light on which problems are most prevalent and where, we will be in a better place to direct improvements.

As well as ecological features such as plants and wildlife, the Big River Watch app will also document the health and wellbeing effects of spending time in nature. Users will be asked how the stretch of river makes them feel, and what good things they have noticed.

Data gathered will be used to help support policy change, as over time the results will demonstrate the impacts of interventions such as nature-based solutions or local planning policy.

Tessa Wardley, Director of Communication & Advocacy at The Rivers Trust, said: “All across the UK and Ireland, we know that people are demanding better for their rivers, but the current lack of data on them prevents us from fully understanding what state they are in, and how that can be improved. The Big River Watch will put river data in the hands of communities; they will be at the heart of the data collection in the first place, and then all the results will be free and accessible for everyone to use.”

Download the Big River Watch app with the Apple App Store

Download the Big River Watch app with Google Play

The Rivers Trust are conservation experts with a wealth of data and expertise at our fingertips. Through our network of over 63 local Trusts in England, Wales, Scotland, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, and with over 350 dedicated specialists including over 60 farm advisers giving confidential expert advice, we work in partnership at a catchment scale to make our shared vision of wild, healthy, natural rivers, valued by all a reality.

Background information

The Big River Watch has been developed by The Rivers Trust and other partner organisations within CaSTCo (a project creating a national framework for improving river health data, with citizen scientists at the heart). Big River Watch is an important tool to support CaSTCo in introducing new and diverse audiences to river science and to encourage accessible engagement and diverse recruitment of volunteers.

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