CLEAN river campaigners in Ilkley have criticised the Environment Agency for failing to test water quality in an area of the Wharfe that is popular with bathers, despite being regularly polluted with raw sewage.

A stretch of the River Wharfe in Ilkley was the first in the UK to be granted bathing water status from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs last year after a campaign by the Ilkley Clean River Group.

It requires the Environment Agency to regularly test the water quality of the river during the bathing water season which started on Saturday, and to take any action to address pollution. Testing will continue until the end of September.

The Environment Agency announced on Saturday it would be testing water purity at just one site - ‘Cromwheel’ just upstream of the suspension bridge where there is the bend in the river.

The Ilkley Clean River Group said while it was delighted to have secured Bathing Status for the river, with the intent to trigger a clean up of the river, by failing to test at two sites the Environment Agency would only monitor the water upstream of the storm overflow drains which dump untreated water into the Wharfe, leaving the most polluted area downstream unmonitored.

A spokesperson for the Ilkley Clean River Group said: "The application covered two sections of the river, one upstream of the sewage works, and one that includes the 'storm overflow' and treated sewage work outlet.

"Both stretches were approved by Defra. The Environment Agency is testing in the section upstream of the sewage works. This is where the Ilkley Clean River Group has already, using citizen science, demonstrated that in dry weather the river is fit for people to paddle, play and swim.

"The EA has described the designation on its site as 'The Cromwheel at Ilkley indicating a stretch of the river that is one tenth of the whole stretch approved by Defra. The EA has told us that there is little point testing downstream as the river is polluted. It cites publicly that it is only required to test at one point. However testing also secures signage which is why we applied for the whole one mile stretch and included it as two sections.

"This means that there is no testing of the highly polluted section of the river where raw sewage is discharged over 100 days of every year (over the last three years it has never been less than 110 days) - that is a third of the year. It also means there is no signage warning of the pollution. This section was included in the designation application because of the high levels of usage by local children and visitors. It is the area that first catalysed the campaign. Our testing of the water in this section demonstrates pollution 35-50 times the levels that are safe for people to paddle, play and swim. We have known this now for nearly two years and still the public is not informed.

"The new Wharfe Partnership between Yorkshire Water and Bradford Council with other partners is welcomed, but its focus on data is not securing the level of clean up in Ilkley that is needed to protect people and wildlife.

"Two years on from the campaign, and even with Bathing Status our river is still being treated as an open sewer. Responses from the agencies persistently refer to the difficulty of cleaning up the river. The solution is known - the system needs to be de-combined so only household waste goes to the treatment works

"We will continue to campaign for solutions to the problem, and for the recognition of the whole designation as per the town's application."

An Environment Agency spokesperson said: “As stipulated by legislation a bathing water sampling point is chosen based on the area where most people bathe.

“In the case of the River Wharfe at Ilkley this is ‘Cromwheel’ just upstream of the suspension bridge where there is the bend in the river.

“Sample results are uploaded to the Swimfo website throughout the bathing season (15 May to 30 September). The site also includes further details about the bathing water and a map showing the location.”

For background information the spokesperson added: "The River Wharfe will be tested in the same way as coastal areas that are designated. It’s the only river being tested as it’s the only designated bathing water that’s a river.

"Once a designation has been made the Environment Agency is responsible for selecting a monitoring point most representative of where most people access the water and also need to locate this where it can be safely sampled.

"The Bathing Water Regulations do not specify a formal area for a bathing water, just a monitoring point. This is why the Cromwheel site was selected, as the one site to represent the bathing water closest to the access, facilities and where most people bathe.

"Signage for bathers will be displayed at Cromwheel along the River Wharfe and will be the responsibility of Bradford Council.

"A bathing water profile has been produced for the River Wharfe on our Swimfo website giving a summary of our knowledge of pollution sources in the catchment.

"Results from regular water testing will be uploaded throughout the bathing season so that people wishing to use the bathing water can get the latest information."

Environment Agency Chair Emma Howard Boyd added: “The high standards in bathing waters on the coast have taken significant investment and decades of hard graft. Now we’ll coordinate similar effort following the ground-breaking decision to designate a stretch of the River Wharfe as a bathing river. This will require collaboration and innovation to reduce pollution and improve the local environment. It will be difficult but should be achievable and provide learning we can apply to other rivers in the future.”