Wealden councillors support Rights to Rivers to help river protection
Publish Date: 22 July 2025
At a recent Full Council meeting at Wealden District Council, a motion was passed to support stronger environmental protection as river health continues to decline.
The motion – proposed by Councillor Rachel Millward and seconded by Councillor Paul Coleshill – asked Wealden councillors to agree to support the idea of giving rivers a set of basic rights under the law, including the right to flow and the right to be free of pollution, and to support community action for all our rivers – the Cuckmere, Medway, Ouse and Uck.
In addition, it was also agreed to support the Friends of the River Medway and to accept their invitation to talk about a new Declaration of Rights of the River Medway, as part of the River Medway Pilgrimage: From Source to Sea this month, and to discuss joining the Declaration of Rights of the River Ouse supported by Lewes District Council earlier this year.
The motion passed reflects growing momentum both in the UK and internationally to give nature – and rivers specifically – a stronger voice through legal and ecological recognition.
Wealden District Council is already pioneering in its approach to protection of its rivers and lobbys government ministers, Ofwat and the Environment Agency via the Southern Water Stakeholder Group – a group of more than 20 south east councils; tested pioneering Grampian conditions at appeal – which prevent houses being occupied until the sewerage systems are functioning; and as a council investing in Sussex Wildlife Trust’s Wilder Ouse Project to restore that river with creation of new wetlands and planting of trees and hedges.
Councillor Rachel Millward, Alliance for Wealden (Green Party), lead councillor for Community, Culture and Communications and deputy leader of the council, said, “None of our rivers are alright. None of them meet the “good” ecological standard. All are polluted by raw sewage, agricultural runoff, road chemicals, microplastics, and forever chemicals. Their biodiversity is collapsing. We extract too much water, as if rivers had infinite capacity. Thanks to climate change, they suffer drought and extreme rainfall. We’ve canalised and dammed them, removed wetlands and floodplains — then wonder why we have so much flooding.
“It’s time to acknowledge that our exploitative relationship with nature must change and that we need to fundamentally change our relationship with nature. Declaring river rights is a powerful first step.”