VOLUNTEERS and supporters gathered at HaverHub on Thursday (May 14) for a major update on the health of the Afonydd Cleddau catchment.

The Cleddau Project presented two years of citizen science water quality data, collected by volunteers from sites across the rivers and their tributaries.

Professor Paul Withers, of Lancaster University, who has authored key reports on the catchment, including the CCAP 2 report, gave a detailed analysis of the findings.

The message from the meeting was stark: Pembrokeshire’s iconic rivers have suffered a serious decline in water quality and wildlife, and major change will be needed to restore them to good ecological health.

Volunteers have spent the past two years monitoring water quality across the Cleddau system, gathering information on nutrients including phosphates and nitrates, as well as other indicators of river health.

The project says the data provides an important grassroots picture of the pressures facing the Western and Eastern Cleddau.

Local residents, environmental campaigners and community members filled the room, reflecting growing concern about the future of rivers which are central to Pembrokeshire’s biodiversity, tourism and heritage.

The meeting heard that pressures including agricultural diffuse pollution, wastewater discharges and nutrient enrichment continue to affect the catchment, with concerns over impacts on fish populations, habitats and species such as salmon, trout and otters.

The Cleddau Project works with partners including the West Wales Rivers Trust and contributes to wider efforts linked to the Afonydd Cleddau Nutrient Management Board.

A full report setting out the findings is expected to be released in the coming days.

One volunteer who attended said the evening brought both pride in the work carried out and renewed determination to push for action.

They said: “This data shows we can’t afford to wait.”

The Cleddau Project is continuing to welcome new volunteers and supporters as it moves into the next stage of advocacy and practical restoration work.

The group has previously organised community events and exhibitions, including My River at HaverHub, aimed at raising awareness of the importance of the Cleddau rivers to Pembrokeshire life.

The Herald will publish further details when the full report is released.

PLAID CYMRU’S new Welsh Government is planning a pilot scheme which could see some of the poorest families in Wales receive an extra £10 a week for young children.

The proposed Cynnal payment, meaning “maintain” in Welsh, would initially support around 15,000 children aged under six in households already receiving Universal Credit.

Deputy First Minister Sioned Williams said ministers would spend the first 100 days drawing up the scheme before launching it “as soon as possible” afterwards.

The pilot is expected to cost around £10m and would be modelled on Scotland’s child payment, which began at £10 a week and has since risen to £26.70.

Ms Williams said the Welsh Government wanted to test the impact of the payment before making the case for wider powers from Westminster.

She said: “If we needed further powers in order to roll that out beyond a pilot, then we would take the evidence that we have, evidence that is already apparent from Scotland.

“We would be able to show the impact that it’s had and then we would say we need those powers to roll it out across Wales.”

However, Reform UK’s Welsh leader Dan Thomas questioned whether families would actually be better off if the UK Government deducted the money from existing benefits.

He said: “It’s completely unclear whether this move would make anybody better off.

“If Westminster deducts the amount from other benefits, this project would use up a substantial amount of Welsh Government resources with no benefit to working people.

“Benefits claimants are not guinea pigs and should not be used as pawns in Plaid’s funding battles with Westminster.”

The policy was outlined as First Minister Rhun ap Iorwerth unveiled the first solely Plaid Cymru Welsh Government.

Plaid has also pledged to work towards a national care service, free at the point of use, although Mr ap Iorwerth said financial pressures meant that could not happen immediately.

The party also wants to expand childcare to every child aged nine months to four years, for 20 hours a week, but Mr ap Iorwerth said around 1,000 more childcare workers would be needed to deliver the plan.

NEARLY 40% of newly elected Senedd Members have backed a Palestine Solidarity Campaign pledge supporting Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions against Israel, according to new analysis by the campaign group.

The Palestine Solidarity Campaign Cymru says 36 of the 96 Members of the Senedd signed its Senedd Pledge for Palestine before the election.

Those listed include 33 Plaid Cymru MSs, both Green MSs, and Labour MS Mike Hedges.

PSC says the pledge has also been signed by seven of the ten newly appointed members of the Welsh Government Cabinet, as well as two deputy ministers.

The pledge calls on MSs to uphold the rights of the Palestinian people, oppose what it describes as Israel’s “genocide and apartheid”, and ensure the Welsh Government is not complicit, including through support for BDS.

The BDS movement was launched in 2005 by Palestinian civil society organisations and calls for boycotts, divestment and sanctions against Israel. Supporters compare it with the international campaign against apartheid South Africa, while critics argue it unfairly targets Israel and can fuel hostility towards Jewish communities.

PSC says the issue has direct relevance in Wales following controversy over a £500,000 Welsh Government grant to a company linked to the F-35 fighter jet supply chain. The campaign says parts used in those aircraft have been exported for use by Israel.

Bethan Sayed, Co-Chair of Palestine Solidarity Campaign Cymru, said the level of support represented a “watershed moment” for Welsh politics.

She said: “Almost 40% of our new Senedd Members have sent a clear message: the people of Wales will not sit idly by while the UK Government fuels the machinery of apartheid and genocide.

“This shows that Palestine was on the ballot paper, and the new Welsh Government must act decisively.”

She added: “We are calling on the Welsh Government to immediately audit all financial ties to companies complicit in Israel’s illegal occupation and ensure that no more Welsh taxpayers’ money, such as the £500,000 grant to the F-35 supply chain, is used to facilitate the obliteration of Gaza.

“The Welsh Government must use its unique voice to demand that the UK Government end its arms export licences to Israel.”

PSC said 141 Senedd candidates had signed the pledge before polling day, including 57 Plaid Cymru candidates, 49 Green candidates, nine Liberal Democrats, seven Labour candidates and seven independents.