Paul Powlesland, a 38-year-old barrister from the UK, pledged his oath of duty on jury service in a unique way. Rather than swearing ‘by Almighty God’, ‘by Allah’, ‘by Waheguru’, or ‘on the Gita’ like most UK jury members, Powlesland chose to swear by the River Roding. Acknowledging the river “from her source in Molehill Green” to her “confluence with the Thames,” Powlesland’s choice caused initial confusion.
Powlesland’s oath to the River Roding was allowed by a slightly bewildered judge. While the judge was at first perplexed, he permitted the unconventional oath because Powlesland affirmed his secular juror’s duty in addition to his river oath. The judge was also convinced of Powlesland’s sincerity as a true lover of the river.
The UK barrister is indeed passionate about the River Roding. Away from the court, Powlesland is devoted to the river’s conservation efforts. He spends his free time removing waste from the River Roding by canoe and planting trees along its banks. He is also known for situating benches along the river’s edge.
Powlesland has founded the River Roding Trust to further his mission of protecting and regenerating the 31-mile river. The River Roding starts in rural Essex, flows west towards London, and ends in the urban borough of Barking and Dagenham. The latter area is where Powlesland has lived on a 45-foot narrow boat for the past seven years.
Despite its serene reed beds, the stretch of the River Roding where Powlesland resides and concentrates his conservation efforts is in a precarious situation. In the last 200 years, the river has been misused by humans and is now surrounded by a motorway, housing estates, warehouses, train lines, and pylons. Even with these challenges, Powlesland believes in the river’s potential for recovery.
Although coming from a non-environmentalist family and having no prior interest in rivers, Powlesland developed a deep affection for the River Roding after years of living on the water. According to him, “Something magic happens when you get to know a specific part of nature and, for me, that’s the Roding.” He encourages others to spend time by their local river to develop a similar connection and love.
Through Lawyers for Nature, an advocacy group he co-founded, Powlesland is trying to secure a legal right of protection for UK rivers. While the outcome is uncertain, he believes the power lies with the people to become guardians of their local rivers, to consider them sacred, and to care for them on that basis. This is the declaration that the dedicated River Roding protector, Paul Powlesland, sincerely makes.
