Most UK dairy farms ignoring pollution rules as manure spews into rivers

Posted on April 19, 2024 by Admin

Exclusive: 80% of Welsh dairy farms inspected, 69% of English ones, 60% in Scotland and 50% in Northern Ireland breaching regulations

The majority of UK dairy farms are breaking pollution rules, with vast amounts of cow manure being spilled into rivers.

When animal waste enters the river, it causes a buildup of the nutrients found in the effluent, such as nitrates and phosphates. These cause algal blooms, which deplete the waterway of oxygen and block sunlight, choking fish and other aquatic life.

Record number of river barriers removed across Europe in 2023

Posted on April 15, 2024 by Admin

Removal of nearly 500 barriers last year will help restore disturbed waterways to their natural state, says Dam Removal Europe

Europe removed a record number of dams and other barriers from its rivers in 2023, a report has found, helping to restore its disturbed waterways to their natural states.

Nearly 500 barriers were taken out of European rivers last year, according to figures compiled by Dam Removal Europe, an increase of 50% from the year before.

Campaigners fear plan to fight River Wye pollution has been shelved

Posted on April 2, 2024 by Admin

Letters revealed under FoI laws show council asked environment secretary to investigate plan

The government has been accused of quietly shelving a delayed plan to restore the polluted River Wye after letters from the government show it is incomplete with no publication date in sight.

Letters revealed to the Guardian under freedom of information (FoI) laws show the then environment secretary, Thérèse Coffey, told stakeholders in August that the government was “close to finalising” the plan to save the Wye and measures would be published within three months.

Scientists find skull of enormous ancient dolphin in Amazon

Posted on March 20, 2024 by Admin

Fossil of giant river dolphin found in Peru, whose closest living relation is in South Asia, gives clues to future extinction threats

Scientists have discovered the fossilised skull of a giant river dolphin, from a species thought to have fled the ocean and sought refuge in Peru’s Amazonian rivers 16m years ago. The extinct species would have measured up to 3.5 metres long, making it the largest river dolphin ever found.

The discovery of this new species, Pebanista yacuruna, highlights the looming risks to the world’s remaining river dolphins, all of which face similar extinction threats in the next 20 to 40 years, according to the lead author of new research published in Science Advances today. Aldo Benites-Palomino said it belonged to the Platanistoidea family of dolphins commonly found in oceans between 24m and 16m years ago.

Come clean on secret taxpayer rescue plans for Thames Water, MP demands

Posted on March 12, 2024 by Admin

Exclusive: Sarah Olney to press in parliament for details of scheme being drawn up in event of supplier’s collapse

‘I’ve seen solid waste float by’: residents try to Stop the Poo

Ministers must come clean on the secret details of an emergency plan for a taxpayer bailout in the event of Thames Water collapsing, a Liberal Democrat MP has said.

Sarah Olney will press in parliament this week for details of a behind-the-scenes rescue operation being drawn up for the biggest privatised water company in England. Olney said keeping the details of the contingency plan secret amounted to a cover-up.

‘Poisoned by chemicals’: citizen scientists prove River Avon is polluted

Posted on February 24, 2024 by Admin

Charity blames the decline of invertebrates on farming, sewage and run-off from roads and homes, months after the Environment Agency told them the water in Wiltshire river was clean

A citizen science programme has revealed the decline of one of the country’s most significant chalk streams after claims by Environment Agency officials that it had not deteriorated. The SmartRivers programme run by the charity WildFish, which surveys freshwater invertebrates, reported “strong declines in relation to chemical pressure” on the River Avon in Wiltshire. It said its data indicated a decline in the condition of the river over the last five years.

The charity compiled a report on its findings after the conservation groups say they were told at a meeting by the Environment Agency in August that “the Avon has not deteriorated in water quality in the last five years”. David Holroyd, head of water quality for Wiltshire Fishery Association, said the numbers of invertebrates collected in spring and autumn samples from 2019 and 2023 at 11 sites on the upper Avon had shown a decline.

Environment Agency failed to protect River Wye from chicken waste, court to hear

Posted on February 7, 2024 by Admin

Campaigners argue in legal challenge that loophole has allowed poultry farmers to pollute river

The Environment Agency and the UK government failed to protect the River Wye from catastrophic decline by allowing pollution from industrial chicken farming to saturate the land and devastate the protected river, a legal challenge is to argue.

Vets urged to stop giving pesticide flea treatments after river pollution study

Posted on February 1, 2024 by Admin

Exclusive: Pet owners risk contaminating their hands with neurotoxins for at least 28 days after application, scientists find

Vets should limit the use of flea treatments containing pesticides on dogs and cats, scientists have said, after a study revealed the vast amount of toxic substances in them that end up in rivers.

Pet owners using these flea treatments risk contaminating their hands with fipronil and imidacloprid, two insecticides, for at least 28 days after the treatment has been applied, according to research by the University of Sussex and Imperial College London.

‘We can’t engineer our way out of this’: how to protect flood-hit Severn Valley

Posted on January 27, 2024 by Admin

Tens of millions have been spent on human-made defences over the years, but the impact of the climate crisis means flooding is inevitable

When Jo Bloom saw the monitoring station on the River Severn above Shrewsbury register water levels of 6.5 metres as Storm Henk struck in early January, she began preparing for the worst. Bloom, who runs the Bewdley Flood Group, a local initiative to disseminate information to the community, was crouched over her computer checking Environment Agency alerts on river levels as the storm battered southern and central Britain, bringing with it heavy rain on to already saturated ground.

“We have had one peak, we are all watching Crew Green gauge above Shrewsbury, which is 10cm off its 2000 record level,” she told the flood group.

Menindee fish kills: inconsistent pesticide levels sparks calls for review of water testing methods

Posted on January 26, 2024 by Admin

Experts call for review after two sets of water samples from the Darling-Baaka River reported by the state’s top scientific bodies contained different results

Experts are calling for more sensitive water quality testing in the Darling-Baaka River amid concerns that pesticides could be contributing to poor conditions, blue-green algae blooms and fish deaths.

It follows two of the state’s top scientific bodies publishing test results from water samples taken near Menindee in far western New South Wales which contained inconsistent results.

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Wild weather continues after stormy night – as it happened

Posted on December 25, 2023 by Admin

This blog is now closed.

What’s causing the storms?

Senior meteorologist Angus Hines from the Bureau of Meteorology just spoke to ABC News about the severe thunderstorms hitting the east coast.

[It is] primarily driven by some warm humid air in the low levels of the atmosphere, which is partly contributed to by a ton of warm ocean temperatures off the east coast of Australia providing a lot of that warmth and humidity into the atmosphere.

We also have a big low pressure system higher up which just provides that extra energy and support which allows these thunderstorms do develop and grow, and as you say, they have been causing extensive disruptive weather over the last few days.

Cairns airport closed as Queensland premier declares ‘serious weather emergency’ amid record flood fears

Posted on December 17, 2023 by Admin

Floods exceeding 1977 levels expected, Steven Miles says, as heavy rain leaves 10,500 homes without power

Cairns airport has been closed in anticipation of record flooding in the far north Queensland city as the state premier, Steven Miles, declared a “serious weather emergency” in the wake of ex-Tropical Cyclone Jasper.

On Sunday afternoon Miles said flood levels in Cairns were expected to exceed the previous record of 1977 and there were “significant concerns” for many communities in the far north.

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Weather tracker: Low Mississippi River levels take toll on farmers

Posted on December 8, 2023 by Admin

Economic loss from disruption on important travel route for grain exports estimated to be $20bn

Extreme drought and a warm autumn have left water levels on the Mississippi exceptionally low for the time of year. This is causing problems for farmers who rely on the river as a travel route for the crops: 60% of US grain exports use the waterway to reach the Gulf coasts.

The total economic loss is estimated to be about $20bn and, despite attempts to dredge the river, it remains worryingly low as the country enters an important month for grain transport.

Drought turns Amazonian capital into climate dystopia

Posted on October 18, 2023 by Admin

Forest fires leave Manaus with second worst air quality in the world, while low river levels cut off communities

A withering drought has turned the Amazonian capital of Manaus into a climate dystopia with the second worst air quality in the world and rivers at the lowest levels in 121 years.

The city of 1 million people, which is surrounded by a forest of trees, normally basks under blue skies. Tourists take pleasure boats to the nearby meeting of the Negro and Amazon (known locally as the Solimões) rivers, where dolphins can often be seen enjoying what are usually the most abundant freshwater resources in the world.

Sunak branded ‘inaction man’ at PMQs as Starmer attacks record on schools, prisons and China – UK politics live

Posted on September 13, 2023 by Admin

Labour leader accuses government of failing to heed warnings which has led to series of crises this week

Here is the list of MPs down to ask a question at PMQs.

Yesterday it emerged that ministers are mulling over a plan to tweak the triple lock for pensions so that what might be a bumper 8.5% increase in its value next year ends up being marginally less generous, at 7.8%.

Foul fumes and sewage spills in Tory stronghold of Michael Gove

Posted on August 31, 2023 by Admin

Aggrieved residents tell of issues in constituency of housing secretary planning to rip up pollution laws

While Michael Gove was deciding to weaken pollution laws for new housing developments this week, his own constituency was being plagued by the stench of human waste.

People living on the outskirts of Camberley, the largest town in Gove’s constituency of Surrey Heath, have been complaining for months that foul-smelling fumes from the local sewage works have ruined their summers, causing even the washing they hang out to stink.

Fury as national health check of England’s waters faces six-year wait

Posted on August 19, 2023 by Admin

Exclusive: Assessment that used to happen annually will now take six years despite rising concerns

‘An utter disgrace’: 90% of England’s most precious river habitats blighted by raw sewage and farming pollution

Posted on August 12, 2023 by Admin

Observer investigation reveals the shocking state of the country’s protected freshwater sites of special scientific interest

More than 90% of freshwater habitats on England’s most precious rivers are in unfavourable condition, blighted by farming pollution, raw sewage and water abstraction, an Observer investigation reveals.

None of the approximately 40 rivers with protected habitats in England are in overall good health, according to an analysis of government inspection reports. These include the River Avon in Hampshire, the Wensum in Norfolk and the Eden in Cumbria.

Darling-Baaka River at Menindee faces more fish kills as temperatures rise

Posted on August 8, 2023 by Admin

Exclusive: Dead fish are again appearing in the stressed Darling-Baaka at Menindee, as a fisheries department report reveals the river’s poor state

The Darling-Baaka River at Menindee is on the brink of another environmental catastrophe, with dead fish already appearing along 30km of the river compromised by the last fish kill in March, according to experts.

The office of the chief scientist is due to report by 31 August on the causes of the March disaster, which killed millions of bony herring (also known as bony bream) and thousands of other native fish and carp.

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Roundup Newswires

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Category Archives: Rivers

Most UK dairy farms ignoring pollution rules as manure spews into rivers

Record number of river barriers removed across Europe in 2023

Campaigners fear plan to fight River Wye pollution has been shelved

Scientists find skull of enormous ancient dolphin in Amazon

Come clean on secret taxpayer rescue plans for Thames Water, MP demands

‘Poisoned by chemicals’: citizen scientists prove River Avon is polluted

Environment Agency failed to protect River Wye from chicken waste, court to hear

Vets urged to stop giving pesticide flea treatments after river pollution study

‘We can’t engineer our way out of this’: how to protect flood-hit Severn Valley

Menindee fish kills: inconsistent pesticide levels sparks calls for review of water testing methods

Wild weather continues after stormy night – as it happened

Cairns airport closed as Queensland premier declares ‘serious weather emergency’ amid record flood fears

Weather tracker: Low Mississippi River levels take toll on farmers

Drought turns Amazonian capital into climate dystopia

Sunak branded ‘inaction man’ at PMQs as Starmer attacks record on schools, prisons and China – UK politics live

Foul fumes and sewage spills in Tory stronghold of Michael Gove

Fury as national health check of England’s waters faces six-year wait

‘An utter disgrace’: 90% of England’s most precious river habitats blighted by raw sewage and farming pollution

Darling-Baaka River at Menindee faces more fish kills as temperatures rise