Estimating the contribution of in-stream cattle faeces deposits to nutrient loading in an English Chalk stream

Numerous studies have shown that the addition of faecal matter from livestock to aquatic ecosystems can have a detrimental effect upon water quality. English Chalk streams, as groundwater-dominated rivers of high ecological importance, are particularly susceptible to nutrient loading from cattle faeces. Naturally low concentrations of nitrogen, phosphorus and potassium in such rivers increase their vulnerability to external perturbation from organic matter inputs. Despite this, the amount of faeces directly contributed by livestock such as cattle to a river system is rarely quantified.