The Calder Conservation Group CIC

The Calder Conservation Group CIC The Calder Conservation Group CIC is dedicated to restoring and protecting the River Calder and its surroundings.
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We tackle pollution, remove invasive species, improve habitats, and engage the community in environmental conservation and stewardship.

Joint Well-being Walk & Litter Pick 🚶‍♀️🧤🌿Toni and Mark had a joint well-being walk and litter pick with Calder Conserva...
21/08/2026

Joint Well-being Walk & Litter Pick 🚶‍♀️🧤🌿

Toni and Mark had a joint well-being walk and litter pick with Calder Conservation Group CIC this afternoon. 💚

They left Salterhebble just after 3pm and made it to Sowerby Bridge in record time — just over an hour! 🚶‍♀️💨

Along the canal path, they removed 2 bags of litter from the trees and bushes.

Now, I know 2 bags doesn’t sound like much, but it’s 2 bags too many.

Mostly the usual suspects — dog poo bags 🤦‍♀️, tissues, crisp packets, cans and bottles.

But the most gruesome find was a used sanitary towel at Salterhebble Lock. 🤢

Honestly… just why?! There are bins. There are proper ways to dispose of these things. Please, if you bring it with you, take it home or dispose of it properly.

Two bags removed, a little bit cleaner, and another lovely walk completed. 💚

💩🌊 LOOK AT THE STATE OF THIS MAP.We’ve had some rain over the last few days, but nowhere near enough to make any meaning...
19/08/2026

💩🌊 LOOK AT THE STATE OF THIS MAP.

We’ve had some rain over the last few days, but nowhere near enough to make any meaningful difference to the extremely low river levels and flows we’ve been seeing after the prolonged hot, dry weather.

Yet sewage discharges are happening again across our catchment.

Salterhebble Wastewater Treatment Works has discharged into Hebble Brook twice today alone.

The first was early this morning and the second around lunchtime.

I went down to Salterhebble this afternoon, but unfortunately by the time I arrived the discharge had stopped.

So instead of this being another post just about one outlet, I want to show people how easy it is to start looking at the bigger picture themselves.

Because look at the screenshots.

That brown line on SewageMap represents the predicted downstream impact from recent sewage discharges.

Follow the Calder.

Through the upper valley, Halifax, Brighouse, Mirfield and onwards towards Wakefield.

That’s a hell of a lot of river.

And right now we don’t have anything like the river levels or flows we’d normally associate with significant rainfall washing through the catchment.

In simple terms:

That’s a lot of s**t going into our rivers, with not a lot of water to dilute it or move it. 🤢💩

The good news is that you don’t have to rely on us, Yorkshire Water, the Environment Agency or anybody else to tell you what’s happening.

If you’ve got a smartphone, you can start watching it yourself.

📱 There are three sites I’d encourage everybody with even a passing interest in our rivers to have a look at:

• Surfers Against Sewage – Live Sewage Map⁠
• Yorkshire Water – Live Storm Overflow Map⁠
• SewageMap UK⁠

Find your local river. Find the outlets near you. Check them regularly.

And don’t just check them when it’s absolutely hammering it down.

Check them when it’s barely rained.

If an outlet is showing as operating and you can safely and legally access the watercourse downstream, go and have a look.

Take photos. Take videos. Record the location and time.

If something doesn’t look right, report it.

Report it to the Environment Agency. Report it to the water company. Send it to your councillors and MP. Send it to local environmental groups.

Most importantly, don’t assume somebody else is watching.

We can’t be everywhere.

But there are thousands of people living alongside the Calder and its tributaries carrying a camera, GPS and internet connection around in their pocket every single day.

Imagine if even a fraction of us started paying attention.

I’m not suggesting anybody trespasses, enters the water, approaches an unsafe outfall or interferes with infrastructure.

I’m asking people to look, document and report.

Because when you zoom out and see the Calder catchment looking like these screenshots, I think we should all be asking some serious questions about what is entering our rivers during periods of exceptionally low flow.

And after seeing what has been happening locally over the last few days…

I’ll borrow a line from Jaws:

🦈 “Don’t go in the water.” 🤢💩

👇 Have a look at the maps. What’s happening near you?

Post your screenshots in the comments.

And please share this one. The more eyes we have on our rivers, the better.

🤬38 MINUTE “STORM” DISCHARGE — BUT WHERE WAS THE STORM?Last night, Yorkshire Water’s own Storm Overflow Map recorded Sal...
18/08/2026

🤬38 MINUTE “STORM” DISCHARGE — BUT WHERE WAS THE STORM?

Last night, Yorkshire Water’s own Storm Overflow Map recorded Salterhebble Wastewater Treatment Works discharging into the Hebble Brook for 38 minutes, from 21:38 until 22:16.
After the extended hot, dry weather we’ve experienced, with our rivers and becks already running at very low levels, I’ve got some serious questions about this one.

Yes, we had some rain yesterday evening.

But I certainly don’t remember anything locally that I would describe as heavy or prolonged rainfall.
So what exactly triggered a 38-minute “storm discharge”?
This particular asset is already of concern to us because I’ve seen first-hand what happens in the Hebble Brook when there are issues at this site.

Earlier this year I documented the entire beck running brown downstream of the treatment works. The difference was impossible to miss.
So following last night’s discharge, I went back to the Hebble Brook today to have another look.
With the water now low and relatively clear, I found large amounts of pale, fibrous, paper-like material coating sections of the bed, rocks and submerged surfaces of the beck.

To me, it looks remarkably like finely broken-down toilet paper.

But let’s be absolutely clear about this:

We don’t currently know what it is.

And I’m not claiming that what I’ve photographed today was deposited by last night’s 38-minute discharge.
What I am saying is that given what we’ve previously witnessed at this location, the amount and appearance of this material absolutely warrants investigation.

So I think there are some perfectly reasonable questions that need answering.

🌧️ How much rain actually fell across the catchment yesterday evening?

❓ What triggered this storm overflow after such an extended period of hot, dry weather?

🧪 What exactly entered Hebble Brook during those 38 minutes?

🔬 What is the fibrous, paper-like material currently coating sections of the beck bed?

🌊 And what cumulative impact are repeated discharges having on a small watercourse, particularly when flows are this low?

This is exactly why simply knowing that an overflow has operated isn’t enough.
We need to understand what is actually entering our watercourses, how much is entering them and what happens to that material once it’s there.

We’re not interested in jumping to conclusions.

We’re interested in evidence, accountability and answers.

If anyone around Salterhebble, Copley or Halifax recorded rainfall yesterday evening — especially if you have an actual rain gauge or home weather station — please put the rainfall total, approximate location and time in the comments. 👇

Let’s establish what actually happened.

And if you’ve walked along Hebble Brook recently and noticed anything unusual, we’d like to hear about that too.

🌊 “Within limits” doesn’t automatically mean environmentally acceptable.

Please share this one. The more local information we can gather, the better picture we can build.

A busy Sunday out with Calder Conservation Group yesterday 👇We started the day at Priory Road, Brighouse, where myself a...
17/08/2026

A busy Sunday out with Calder Conservation Group yesterday 👇

We started the day at Priory Road, Brighouse, where myself and three other volunteers spent around two hours clearing the fly-tip that had been set alight.

🔥 Around 10 bags recovered
♻️ Mixed scrap removed
🧹 A large amount of broken glass cleared
🚛 Plus several larger items that hadn’t burned

Everything has now been reported to Calderdale Council for collection.

After that, me and Leo headed out to look at a few potential sites for future clean-up events.

We finished the day with a walk along the River Aire near Oulton, where we unfortunately came across something much more concerning — a number of dead fish of varying sizes and species along the river edge.

I’ve reported the incident to the Environment Agency.

At this stage, we don’t know the cause, but my suspicion is that the fish may have died following an oxygen crash during the prolonged hot, dry spell we’ve experienced recently. Warm, slow-moving water can lose oxygen very quickly, particularly when river levels are low.

It was a pretty grim way to end the day, and hopefully the EA can establish exactly what has happened.

From clearing burned-out fly-tipping in the morning to reporting a possible fish kill in the afternoon — sadly, it shows just how many different pressures our local environment is dealing with.

💚 Thanks as always to everyone who gave up their time yesterday.

Has anyone else noticed dead or distressed fish anywhere along the Aire or other local rivers over the last few days?

💧 UPDATE – RIVER SPEN, HECKMONDWIKEA positive update on the discharge we reported yesterday at the River Spen near Morri...
11/08/2026

💧 UPDATE – RIVER SPEN, HECKMONDWIKE

A positive update on the discharge we reported yesterday at the River Spen near Morrisons, Heckmondwike.

Yorkshire Water have now had teams on site and appear to have traced the issue back to a burst clean water main.

The water from the burst has been finding its way into the surface water network, before discharging through the culverted outfall into the River Spen.

Importantly, Yorkshire Water have also confirmed that this outlet is NOT the Combined Sewer Overflow, as we initially believed from the information available to us.

The actual CSO is slightly further upstream. Yorkshire Water have checked it, confirmed it is empty and not operating, and say the sensor monitoring that asset is working correctly.

Their teams are now isolating the burst and it will be repaired. 👍

This is exactly why we report what we see rather than simply walking past it.

Yesterday we had a substantial flow entering the Spen, visibly changing the colour of the river and continuing for hours. We didn’t know what it was, so we raised it, documented it and asked others locally to report it too.

Thankfully, on this occasion, it doesn’t appear to have been sewage.

Credit where it’s due to the Yorkshire Water teams for getting out, tracing the network upstream and identifying what looks to be the source. 💚

And a massive thank you to everyone who reported it, shared our posts or sent us information. That public response matters.

It also shows why we need to be careful not to jump to conclusions. We initially believed the discharge was associated with the nearby CSO; once better information became available, we’ve updated that position.

👀 If you see something that doesn’t look right in one of our rivers or becks, report it. Don’t assume somebody else already has.

How many issues like this do you think go unnoticed simply because nobody stops, takes a photo and asks the question?

🚨 UPDATE — STILL DISCHARGING THIS MORNINGWe first reported what appears to be a discharge into the River Spen at the Mor...
11/08/2026

🚨 UPDATE — STILL DISCHARGING THIS MORNING

We first reported what appears to be a discharge into the River Spen at the Morrisons CSO on Beck Lane, Heckmondwike yesterday.

It continued throughout the evening.

This is the same location at 7:40am this morning — and it is STILL going.

The difference in the water is clearly visible. Whatever is coming from this outlet is changing the colour of the River Spen.

Yet Yorkshire Water’s own Storm Overflow Map, refreshed at 6:41am this morning, still shows this CSO as:

🟢 NOT OPERATING

According to the map, its last discharge was on 4 August for just 27 minutes.

Something clearly does not add up.

We are not going to speculate about exactly what this discharge contains without evidence. It could be sewage, a misconnection, industrial input or something else entirely — but that is exactly why it needs investigating.

What we can document is what is happening in front of us: a substantial flow entering the river, a very obvious change in water colour, and a public monitoring system saying the CSO isn’t operating.

📍 Morrisons Car Park Combined Sewer Overflow, Beck Lane, Heckmondwike — River Spen

If you’re local, please report this independently. The more separate reports that are made, the harder it is for an ongoing incident like this to be missed.

And please share this, particularly around Heckmondwike, so we can get more eyes on it.

💬 How much confidence can the public have in live sewage monitoring if an outlet can visibly discharge for hours while the public-facing system says “Not Operating”?

🚨 CURRENTLY DISCHARGING — BUT THE SEWAGE MAP SAYS IT ISN’TWe’re currently at the Morrisons CSO on Beck Lane, Heckmondwik...
10/08/2026

🚨 CURRENTLY DISCHARGING — BUT THE SEWAGE MAP SAYS IT ISN’T

We’re currently at the Morrisons CSO on Beck Lane, Heckmondwike, where there is a very obvious discharge entering the River Spen.

You don’t need specialist equipment to see the impact here.

The discharge is visibly changing the colour of the River Spen, with a clear difference between the water coming from the CSO and the river itself.

Yet at the time of writing, the Yorkshire Water sewage map is showing this asset as NOT currently discharging.

That raises a pretty important question.

If members of the public are being directed towards these maps to understand when their local rivers are being impacted by sewage discharges, how much confidence can we have in that information when what we’re seeing on the ground doesn’t match what we’re being shown online?

This is exactly why having independent eyes on our waterways matters. 👀🌊

📢 LOCALS — PLEASE REPORT THIS

If you’re in Heckmondwike or the surrounding area and you’re concerned about what you’re seeing in the River Spen, please take a couple of minutes to report it directly to Yorkshire Water.

Don’t assume somebody else has already done it.

The more people who independently report what they’re seeing, the better the record of what’s actually happening on the ground.

📍 Morrisons CSO, Beck Lane, Heckmondwike — River Spen
📍 What3Words: ///lion.passions.flocking

We have documented what we’re seeing and will be reporting it ourselves.

If you’re nearby, please don’t enter the water or put yourself at risk to get photographs.

👉 If you report it, comment “REPORTED” below.

And please LIKE & SHARE this post, particularly with people around Heckmondwike, so we can get as many local eyes on this as possible.

Has anyone else seen this discharge today, or noticed the sewage map showing something different to what you’re seeing on the ground? 👇

09/08/2026

🚨 ANOTHER FLY TIP ON THE RIVERBANK IN BRIGHOUSE 🚨

Yet again, somebody has dumped a load of waste on the riverbank behind Screwfix on Priory Road.

With the dry weather we’re having at the minute, this isn’t just an environmental risk to the River Calder — it’s a massive fire risk too, particularly to the businesses that back directly onto this stretch of riverbank. 🔥

And the chances are, somebody has probably paid to have this waste taken away, believing it was going to be disposed of properly.

Instead, some cowboy has taken the money and dumped it beside our river.

We are monitoring this site, and if we catch anyone turning up here looking to fly tip, they will be challenged and reported.

As usual though, we’re not just going to point at it and complain.

💪 We’re going to clear it.

📍 Behind Screwfix, Priory Road, Brighouse
📅 Sunday 16 August
⏰ 10am

Anyone who wants to come down and give us a hand is more than welcome.

If you can’t make it, you can still help.

👍 LIKE this video
💬 COMMENT on it
🔄 SHARE it

Every interaction helps push the video further, and the further it travels, the more people see what is happening on our riverbanks.

And if you’re paying somebody to remove your waste, please make sure they’re properly licensed to carry it and dispose of it. Cheap waste removal isn’t cheap if it ends up dumped in our communities.

Have you seen an increase in fly tipping around Brighouse and Calderdale recently? 👇

What a great way to start a Friday! 💚Barry and I had a Friday litter pick at Lowfields Business Park this morning.In jus...
07/08/2026

What a great way to start a Friday! 💚

Barry and I had a Friday litter pick at Lowfields Business Park this morning.

In just 90 minutes we cleared all the little slip roads around the double roundabout, collecting 8 bags of litter. We also removed 3 pesky nitrous oxide canisters that I’d spotted down by the riverside after arriving a little earlier than planned.

A huge shout out has to go to The Coffee Journey at Lowfields Business Park too… their hot chocolate is absolutely gorgeous and was the perfect reward after a morning of wombling! ☕🍫

Every bag collected makes a difference. Thank you to everyone who gives up their time to help keep our communities cleaner. 💚🌍

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