Week Before Mid Winter

This has been a very trying year for many, Covid-19 is rampant throughout the World and today I hear of another variant spreading even faster ! 

                        It is only a week until the mid Winter solstice and personally have found this year to have passed very quickly, in spite of the virus effect, maybe just old age ! 

Today I heard from Scottish water regarding the tree debris caught on the Merryton bridge. The contractors have been informed to clear it and will do so when conditions allow. 

The last spate has once again changed the riverbed and a large tree festooned with Ivy ended up in the Moat. 

This tree was strangled by Ivy vines which equalled the density of the tree itself, as the photo shows. Top heavy, it was snapped like a twig when hit by the Spate !  Fortunately a Local firm, HFBC  located adjacent to the Swans Island, gave a helping hand cutting up the obstruction. The Trust Thanks them!

Slim and Sue still show no signs of fledging the cygnets yet, and are content with all that they have.

Disco and her mate Donnie are also content with their lot, waiting on an end to the long dark winter nights. I tried a shot in the dark with night settings ! 

Tree Removal

Twice in the past week, the Trust has contacted Scottish Water to report the Trees hung up on the Merryton Bridge. We keep a close watch on the tidal reaches of the river, and do our best to protect the wildlife and environment. 

The trees were more of a threat to the bridge if allowed to pile up with every spate. The bridge is the responsibility of Scottish water, and I'm happy to say they acted promptly to dispose of the trees.

                    I disposed of one stuck on the Swans Island - watched closely by Penny and Duke !

Waterfowl vs Water-Foul

After last weeks documented sewage discharge into the river, I was told by SEPA that this drain is a combined sewer and rainwater outlet. According to the Spokesman for Scottish water speaking to the Nairnshire Telegraph " the outlet at this site is a consented storm water overflow which is designed to discharge into the river when the sewers are full. At such times the contents of the sewer are extremely diluted by rainwater"  I would take issue with this statement as far as the contents being diluted. 

How do tampons, panty liners and paper towels get diluted ? These are Items I find on the river bed around Merryton bridge.

I'm sure the sewage bacteria will be pleased also to know they are in a diluted environment as well. 

Additionally, there was no rainfall in the preceding 5 hours before this discharge occurred, in other words no storm water overflow to blame. The simple truth is the sewage system is not really fit for purpose, and any additional load from new developments will only make matters worse.

 The residents of Nairn want an enhanced quality of life not a diminished one, we have a choice - is it Waterfowl or Water-foul ,  I know what I prefer ! 

Serious Pollution Incident !

As we all know locally, there is an ongoing issue about Pollution of our beaches and poor infrastructure of the sewage system. 

This evening I witnessed first hand exactly why we have polluted beaches even without adverse weather conditions ! 

At approx 8 pm I was feeding our river birds as usual, when I heard a gushing roar behind me, the drain that was installed a couple of years back above Merryton bridge had opened, and sewage was spilling into the river. It was a mild evening and no rain had fallen locally for at least 5 hours. 

The smell was pretty dire, and I ushered all the water birds away to the clean water part of the river. 

 The discharge only lasted about 5 minutes but nevertheless a few hundred gallons had been released in this time. I took a short movie and photos as evidence for SEPA and Scottish water, and have reported it to both of them this evening.
This was an intentional discharge as though someone had flicked a switch, a quick 5 minute burst of filth that no one would have noticed, but for myself being on the spot !

There can be no doubt this drain is a continuous polluter of the river and beaches, and it's time something was done about it. I reported this sewage drain years ago to SEPA, and all that's happened is they have extended the drain into the river !!
See the evidence for yourself . Short movie clip below.

Wildlife Litter Danger

Yet again the dangers of litter to the wildlife was apparent to me today. I noticed a young gull trailing what appeared to be plastic twine from it's legs. It spent some time trying to peck the tangled mass from it's feet , but only succeeded in making matters worse.

The real danger is the tightening of the twine around the leg stopping the blood supply, when it will lose its foot and probably it's life due to infection. 

Only 20 metres away I noticed the "grey water" drain outlet and surrounding vegetation was festooned with paper towels and other sanitary items, again proving that this is not only a "grey water" overflow ! 

Maybe Scottish water should trace the source of this contamination and hopefully put a stop to it. I am constantly seeing paper towels and other items laying in the shallow water downstream from this drain. Is it from the nearby car wash or shops ? This outlet is also permanently open which will allow rats easy access !

River Pollution - UPDATE.

Scottish Water have told me they will investigate.

Another pollution incident yesterday just above the Nairn A96 roadbridge, don't know what it was but sure it shouldn't be going into the river ! 

Appears to be coming from a fractured or blocked pipe above the Main sewer. I have informed SEPA and Scottish water.
Our 109  Trust members would like to see this fixed !

Rock of Wages

Today heralds the addition of massive rock armour to the sewer outfall at the Merryton flats. Apparently Scottish water have decided that this barrier is needed, to prevent erosion by the tidal race and any floods washing the outfall away. Personally I think this is over the top and a waste of money. The money would have been better spent preventing what's coming out of this "grey water" sewer! 

During yesterdays rainfall I could see quite a few sanitary items floating by and the smell was obvious too. 

I thought these items were filtered out, according to Scottish water? Perhaps the River Community Councils new found pride in the riverside might take this up with SEPA and Scottish water ?  
Having spoken to the Contractor today, I was assured that this rock would be covered over completely. If not, it would be a perfect Haven for Rats and Mink, to the detriment of everybody, as well as the wildlife!

Seagull Drummers

This past weeks weather has hopefully delayed nesting for many of the ducks, we don't want them kicking off too early and getting caught out later.

The white duck is still spending most of the time resting the injured leg and preening, 

but I have seen her use it sparingly, fortunately It does not affect her flying ability.

 I noticed yesterday the river drain above Merryton bridge staining the water Green, but was told by a passer by that it was food colouring used by Scottish water for testing, I hope so ! 

The gulls are seeking out protein in the form of drumming for worms, this simulates a mole digging, and the vibrations make the worms rise to the surface. More and more gulls are acquiring these skills, they are highly adaptable.(Short vid below.)

Short Memories

People have amazingly short memories, so maybe a quick reminder of what the rats were probably living on back in the summer time. The large pond of raw sewage at the Merryton bridge which was a regular feature, compliments of Scottish water ! We didn't see Mr Alan Bentley doing his principal waste management duties then - just because the rats couldn't be seen under the summer growth doesn't mean they weren't there.

It Must be Turdsday....again !....Update

                   I have been informed by SEPA that Scottish water will be conducting investigations next week to determine whether there are blockages in the sewer downstream. It would be interesting to know how often Scottish Water rod or power clean the main sewers ?


 In a repeat of last Saturday's pollution incident, the manhole covers were again spewing sewage down both sides of the Merryton bridge riverside paths. A video of the incident can be viewed on the Gurn. Twice within 5 days we have thousands of gallons polluting the environment. With the school holidays just starting, I would not advise kids to play anywhere near the Merryton bridge area at this time. I gave Popeye his first dose of Antibiotics this afternoon, Scottish Water gave him his second dose of Bacteria in a week ! This is a serious problem, and shows that the sewer system here is not fit for purpose, it needs a thorough overhaul ! I reported the incident again to Scottish water and I'm sure others did too.

Riverside Pollution...Again !....UPDATE !

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) replied to my email saying that they were informed by Scottish water of the overflow and are currently investigating.

New pipe, old problem - seems like Nairn sewage system still cant cope with a 20 minute downpour ! I hope we don't get the deluge that they have been getting down south ! I stood under the Nairn A96 road bridge to avoid a 20 minute downpour this afternoon, on arrival at Merryton (sewage Bridge) well named by locals, the smell was ripe and the raw sewerage flowed freely from the manhole covers at both ends of the bridge. The short video and pics tell the story. I phoned Scottish Water to tell them of the sewerage pool on the riverside path. After the renewal of the fractured section of pipe on the west side at Brochers brae, this has done nothing to solve the problem of sewerage overspill due to lack of maintenance and or renewal of Nairn's sewerage system ! This is the start of the Tourist season and thousands of gallons of raw sewerage has now headed downstream to pollute the beaches. Having heard that one of the contractors renewing the fractured section, was of the opinion that the system was choked up and reduced to half it's capacity. Scottish water needs to maintain and upgrade where needed, IT IS UNACCEPTABLE FOR THIS POLLUTION TO CONTINUE !