The Voice of the River Wye is now represented on the Wye Catchment Nutrient Management Board following a successful recruitment campaign.
The Nutrient Management Board brings together local stakeholders to influence, advise and challenge proposals, plans, decisions and actions that have an impact on the River Wye, and those that deliver improvements.
Earlier this year, the Board took the unusual step of creating a place for someone to represent the interests of the River Wye, to act as an advocate and to vote on behalf of the River in Board decisions.
Following an extremely successful recruitment campaign, Dr Louise Bodnar has been assigned to the role.
Councillor Elissa Swinglehurst, Cabinet member for Environment and chair of the Wye Catchment Nutrient Management Board said: “We set a high bar when it came to finding someone who not only cares about the River Wye and catchment but also understands the science behind nutrient management, and we were delighted with the quality of the applications we received.
“We are incredibly pleased that Dr Louise Bodnar has agreed to represent the Voice of the River Wye on the Board. Louise is an experienced scientist and qualified ecologist who has previously worked on river restoration projects. She is already working with landowners and farmers locally, providing advice and developing projects which restore ecological processes. We welcome her experience and expertise and are confident she will be an excellent advocate for the River.”
Dr Louise Bodnar added: “I'm delighted to have been offered the honour of representing the interests of the River Wye Herself on the Nutrient Management Board. I’ll do my utmost to advocate for the needs of the River and all the many species and habitats dependent upon the River.
“Putting the River on the board begins to move us away from an anthropocentric view of the world, where nature is a resource for us to use, towards a view in which we understand ourselves to be interdependent parts of the natural world, reminding us that we belong to the earth, the earth does not belong to us."