My father, Morlais Owens, former chief scientist of Dwr Cymru (Welsh Water) and chairman of the Campaign for the Protection of Rural Wales, has died aged 81.
Morlais was born in Rhymney, Monmouthshire, the son of a miner, Idris Owens, and his wife, Mary, and eldest of three children. He was educated at Lewis school, Pengam, then studied botany at Swansea University. After postgraduate research at Swansea, he joined the Water Pollution Research Laboratory in Stevenage, Hertfordshire, specialising in the biology of rivers and lakes.
While at Swansea, Morlais met Marion, a student teacher from Llanboidy in Carmarthenshire. They married in 1959, and had two children, Elis and me. In 1974 the opportunity came for Morlais to work in Wales when the Welsh Water Authority (later Dwr Cymru) was established in Brecon. A major strand of work was improving river quality in industrial areas; it was a proud day when the river Rhymney was restocked with salmon.
Morlais was from a generation that saw the Welsh language lose ground in the south Wales valleys. However, he never completely lost his Welsh and after marrying Marion gradually regained confidence in the language. By the time he was appointed chief scientist at Dwr Cymru in 1987, he was able to speak about water pollution issues to the Welsh-language media.
Morlais's expertise was widely sought. In the 1960s he went to Uganda to advise on Lake Victoria. He attended international conferences in Italy and France and was due to attend the International Association on Water Pollution Research (IAWPR) in Prague in 1968. This was postponed following the Soviet invasion but took place some 18 months later.
During the 1970s Morlais was invited to the Soviet Union and Dwr Cymru hosted a return visit of Russian scientists to study Welsh rivers and reservoirs. After retiring in 1989, he served as a scientific adviser to several parliamentary committees.
During his retirement, Morlais joined the local branch of the Campaign for the Protection of Rural Wales and in 2001 was elected national chairman, serving for four years. He particularly enjoyed presenting Rural Wales awards to recognise improvements to the environment or local community. Morlais also chaired the Elan Valley Trust for several years. The trust protects the flora and fauna of the Elan estate, encourages public access and safeguards against inappropriate developments. One of the highlights of this time was the restoration of an old Welsh longhouse, Llannerch y Cawr.
He is survived by Marion, Elis and me; and his sister, Eirwen, and brother, Eifion.