Proposed ‘Designated Bathing Area’ near Paradise

Dear Friends,

You will probably know that the Cam Valley Forum (CVF) are proposing a Designated Bathing Area (DBA) along the Cam, from Sheep’s Green and the Rush to Hodson’s Folly.

They are now holding an online consultation which will go to DEFRA (Dept for the Environment, Farming and Agriculture), which will decide on the suitability of the proposal, taking into consideration the views of the community.

The proposed DBA would run alongside the nature reserves of Sheep’s Green and Coe Fen, and adjacent to Paradise.

Sheep’s’ Green was the ‘town bathing place’ fifty years ago, but it is now the site of the Canoe Club, with 600 members. The bathing place was discontinued by the Council for safety reasons, and the river is now even less safe and much busier with canoes, punts and paddle boards.

In an earlier consultation, the Friends of Paradise, the South Newnham Neighbourhood Forum, the RA and other Friends groups all objected to a DBA for reasons of environmental capacity, safety and harm to ecology.

A DBA requires monitoring of the water, which we know would show that it is of poor quality. There is now considerable pressure on Anglian Water to stop illegal sewage dumping, and it is doubtful whether a DBA would add much to this.

The Friends of Paradise remain concerned that this small green area could not sustain many more visitors, and making Sheep’s Green a honeypot ‘Visitor Destination’ would mean inevitable harm to wildlife and biodiversity.

Please let us have your views, and please also respond to the consultation on the CVF website, which is here: http://bitly.ws/RMwc