Urgency, Innovation and Collaboration for Lakes, Lochs & Wetlands

The Seven Lochs Partnership hosted the 2023 UK and Ireland Lakes Network Conference in Glasgow on 10th and 11th October.

Over two days delegates experienced a trio of thought provoking site visits in the Seven Lochs Wetland Park and Strathclyde Country Park, and received a series of papers which provided:

• European context: climate change impacts on lakes and water systems,
• progress with sustainable urban drainage retrofitting in Glasgow through the City Deal,
• a range of examples of partnership and collaborative working and community engagement with lakes, and;
• lightening talks on tools for lake management.

John Pinder, Chair of the UK and Ireland Lakes Network in summing up said

“The site visits and papers have reflected the theme of the conference ‘Urgency, Innovation and Collaboration’, and delegates have had the opportunity to make new and rekindle existing connections with others working on lakes. Many thanks to all those who supported, hosted and attend the conference for making it a success”.

Conference presentations:

• Keynote Speaker: European Living Lakes Association – Climate change and water ecosystems in Europe, Udo Gattenlöhner – Global Nature Fund
• Glasgow – City Deal Drainage Retrofit Programme – Objectives and lessons learnt, David Hay – Glasgow City Council
• Multi-Functional nature-based solutions through multi-partner finance, Martin Faulkner – NatureScot
• Sustainable finance for lake protection: a case study from Lake Windermere, Alison Whalley (Environment Agency) and Tim Duckmanton (LDPNA) – Love Windermere Partnership Part 1 and Part 2
• Empowering citizen science: real-time algal bloom monitoring via digital microscopes and artificial intelligence across eight states, Andrew Monk – IoLight
• Bloomin’ Algae in Scotland – a Citizen Science App, Jan Krokowski – SEPA / UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology
• The Big Windermere Survey: a citizen science approach to monitoring water quality, Lynsey Harper, Freshwater Biological Association
• Restoration of the shallow hyper-eutrophic lake, Kralingse Plas, Netherlands, using Phoslock, Kate Waters-Hart, Phoslock
• Lake-bedtime stories: the value of sediment records for lake restoration, Madeline Moyle and John Boyle, University of Liverpool
• Social gains from lakes, future threats and sustainable protection for nature, Nicola Morris, South West Lake Trust
• The Ecological Network Tool​: Using spatial modelling to identify priorities for wetland and woodland creation across north-west England, Lorna Drake, Natural England and Natural Course
• Bullets, birds, and binoculars: engaging people and changing mindsets around Lough Neagh, Peter Harper and Nial O’Neil, Lough Neagh Partnership and D-on Architects 

Lakes and their restoration – opportunities for nature recovery and people: Cheshire, June 22.

A multi-sector audience of environmental NGOs, practitioners, academics, researchers and statutory agencies gathered providing a great opportunity to learn and share experience on:

• The role of lakes in the context of nature recovery networks, landscape and catchment scale restoration
• Engagement of citizens in understanding lakes
• How lake restoration is being delivered across England

Tony Juniper – Chair of Natural England opened the conference with a keynote paper describing his own fascination with lakes and making the case for wider collaboration to create a more sustainable future for lakes.

Conference presentations:

• Scene Setting: Lakes – opportunities for restoration and contribution to a Nature Recovery Network – Ruth Hall/Glen Cooper,  Natural England
• The National Trust  (NT) Lake Collection: balancing nature, landscape and heritage  Stewart Clarke, National Specialist – Freshwater, Catchments & Estuaries, NT
• Opportunities for angling and lake conservation to co-exist – Carl Sayer, University College London
• Delivering environmental improvements to the North West lakes network through a Catchment Systems Thinking Approach (CasT) – Mark Sewell and Sion Platts Kilburn, United Utilities
• Challenges of restoring natural function – improving water quality & lake hydrology – an example from Elterwater, Cumbria – Jayne Wilkinson, South Cumbria Rivers Trust.
• Reviving the edges: understanding historical wetland extent and lakeshore restoration opportunities for England’s lakes – Phil Taylor & Ellie Mackay, UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology.
• Freshwater Priority Habitat Citizen Science – Amy Jones, Freshwater Biological Association.
• Restoring Hatchmere- Beavers, Fish, Hydrology and Pollution – Intro to site visit Kevin Feeney, Cheshire Wildlife Trust

The second day was based around two field visits to internationally designated lakes in Cheshire, Hatchmere and Tatton Mere, to see and hear about issues affecting them, and discuss solutions implemented for their restoration. Including the introduction of beavers, restoring the hydrological regime, altering fish assemblages and improving water quality.

Feedback from the event:

“I am much more inspired to do stuff on lakes”

“It reinforced the importance of focusing on lakes as well as rivers”

“Meeting face to face – changed views”

“I liked the full day of talks, it made it easier to get funding to come”

“I got a big dollop of CPD out of it!”

“The best training I have had since joined organisation”

“The importance of networking is harder to quantify”

Event sponsors

Many thanks to Iolight and Aquatic solutions UK for supporting the event

Get in touch

If you would like to find out more about attending, or being involved in our next event please get in touch: info@ukandirelandlakes.org