As part of the Love the Lea project, Thames21 has funding to install five reed beds in the Lea Navigation, and they are taking the unusual step of asking local people to vote to decide where these reed beds will go.
Ben Fenton of Thames21 explains:
“We’ve launched our reedbed vote! Reedbeds are really great for rivers, they provide wildlife with food and places to live, and they act as natural filters removing pollutants from water! We’re giving you the chance to vote for where we put new reedbeds in the Lea Navigation! There are nine sites for you to choose from, in the boroughs of Tower Hamlets, Hackney, Haringey and Waltham Forest. The vote ends on the 31st March, and following this we will then be putting in the five reedbeds that receive the most votes.
All you have to do is take a look at the nine sites in the online poll, and then place your votes! We will then install the five reedbeds that receive the most votes. Plus, leave your email and you will be entered into our prize draw to win some fantastic prizes from The Five Points Brewing Company, Mason & Company, The Official London Eye, Today Bread, Hackney Wick Boulder Project and more! If you’re interested in volunteering to help plant these new reedbeds, or hearing about our free accredited training to help look after them into the future, please let us know when you place your vote.”
One of the nine sites is in Tower Hamlets. It is Site 1 in the poll, Navigation Road, Bromley By Bow, E3 3TG. So if you want to help ensure that one of the reed beds contributes to the Tower Hamlets Local Biodiversity Action Plan, please vote for Site 1.
The poll can be found on Thames21’s website or, if your mobile device has trouble viewing the survey there, you can vote via surveymonkey.
Love the Lea is a Thames21 Programme working with communities in North and East London to improve the rivers of the Lea Catchment. The Community Reedbeds Project is funded by Thames Water, and supported by Environment Agency, Lea Valley Regional Park and the Canal and River Trust.
Header photo by Leela O’Dea
