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REVISION OF THE BIOLOGICAL MONITORING WORKING PARTY (BMWP) SCORE SYSTEM: DERIVATION OF PRESENT-ONLY AND ABUNDANCE-RELATED SCORES FROM FIELD DATA

<24> The paper presents a computer-based method (‘WHPT’) to classify rivers. WHPT enables the British river classification system to conform to the Water Framework Directive (WFD). WHPT has been adopted by regulatory authorities for use in standards and assessments of river quality in the UK. A radical departure from its predecessor, it is based on objective, data-driven statistical analysis applied to a representative field dataset, and it offers greater accuracy and sensitivity. Hence, it significantly enhances the precision and reliability of river classifications under WFD. It underpins the ‘Computer-Based Methods for Diagnosing and Predicting River Health’ impact case study.