NEW licences to continue extracting water from the River Wharfe at Ilkley will risk long-term environmental damage, campaigners have warned.

And the Government ecological watchdog, the Environment Agency, has been accused of giving in to Yorkshire Water's demands for more water.

After a massive consultation exercise with councils, environment campaigners and angling groups, Yorkshire Water has agreed to stop extracting water from the Wharfe at Lobwood, Bolton Abbey.

Three-year river water extraction licenses granted by the Environment Agency to cope with the water shortage in 1995 will expire at the end of this month.

Yorkshire Water applied for new licences, lasting 15 years, but after objections from angling groups, environmental campaigners and Bradford Council, they have been restricted to five years.

Under the new licences which come into force in June, Yorkshire Water will continue to extract water from Ilkley and further downstream at Arthington.

Peter Bowler from the campaign group, Waterwatch, said anglers wanted Yorkshire Water's abstraction point moved as far downstream at Tadcaster.

"I think anglers are going to be disappointed. If you get prolonged periods of low flow and you get abstraction taking place during that it means the general degredation of the ecology of the river," said Mr Bowler.

He added: "The Environment Agency has crumbled and given in to Yorkshire Water's demands."

Brian Featherstone, president of the Ilkley and District Angling Club, said while he was happy that one abstraction point had been moved downstream where the water was deeper, the real solution lay in increased storage capacity.

"They have not got sufficient reservoir capacity to cater for the area. They are doing it on the cheap when they should be constructing fresh reservoirs. All the water that falls in winter goes to waste - it is abysmal," said Mr Featherstone.

Bradford Council issued a statement saying it was pleased that the Environment Agency had restricted the extraction licences to five years from the 15 applied for.

Councillor Dave Green, chairman of the regenerations committee said: "Although the council is obviously concerned that the district should have an adequate water supply it has never been satisfied that the best option is to take supplies from the Wharfe.

"A five-year licence will help to safeguard the long-term future of the river by allowing experts to monitor what effect the abstractions have on the environment and for alternative sources of supplies to be considered."

Coun Green has suggested that Yorkshire Water should do more to reduce leaks and clean up the river Aire to provide more water.

Mr Bowler said: "The Environment Agency should have an ecological objective and everything should fit around that. Wildlife and the environment are always having to compromise - it is never the other way around."

A spokesman for Yorkshire Water said: "Yorkshire Water spends more time and money monitoring the environmental sustainability of its clean and waste water activities than almost any other major water and sewerage company in England and Wales."

The company said it was happy to continue reporting annually on the environmental sustainability of its abstractions.

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