Category Archives: Rivers

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

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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.

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

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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.

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

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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

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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.

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

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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

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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.

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Drought turns Amazonian capital into climate dystopia

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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.

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Ban on wood burners threatens British boat-dwellers with winter freeze

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A new law allows councils to impose on-the-spot fines for emitting smoke

People who live on narrowboats and barges – many on low incomes – say they may struggle to stay warm this winter because an increasing number of councils are planning to fine people burning wood on moored vessels.

Under the Environment Act, which came into force in 2021, council enforcement officers can issue on-the-spot fines of up to £300 to boat dwellers emitting visible smoke from wood burners. Only Sandwell council, in the West Midlands, has so far approved plans to enforce smoke controls along its 41 miles of canals. But three other councils – Liverpool, Newham and Cannock Chase – are planning to start fining houseboats.

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

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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%.

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Foul fumes and sewage spills in Tory stronghold of Michael Gove

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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.

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

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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.

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

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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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Public could receive hundreds of millions as water firms face sewage lawsuit

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Class action legal claim on behalf of 20 million householders in England and Wales could top £800m in compensation

The public could receive hundreds of millions of pounds in compensation in the first class action against water companies which are alleged to have failed to reveal the true scale of raw sewage discharges, and abused their position as privatised monopolies.

A collective case against six water companies alleges they have failed to properly report sewage spills and pollution of rivers and seas to the Environment Agency and Ofwat, the regulator for England and Wales. The first of six parallel claims is against Severn Trent Water on behalf of its 8 million customers. Claims against Thames Water, United Utilities, Anglian Water, Yorkshire Water and Northumbrian Water are being brought in the coming months.

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Loophole lets farmers pollute UK rivers with excess manure – report

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Investigation finds polluting farmers may not face action after breaking the rules

A loophole in the UK’s pollution legislation allows farmers to pollute rivers by spreading excess manure, an investigation has found, with those acting unlawfully not facing any action in most cases.

The government introduced new farming rules for water in 2018, aimed at cleaning up England’s waterways. However, after lobbying from the National Farmers’ Union (NFU), including at least two meetings with ministers, the guidance was watered down.

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‘They were chilled’: bated breath as beavers released in Northumberland

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Animals make first return to the county in 400 years as National Trust introduces family of four to Wallington estate

It was a genuinely tense tale of the riverbank as a family of four beavers were released into the Northumberland countryside on Wednesday, the first time in more than 400 years that the animals are making the county their home.

Would they even come out of their cages? Would they be as feisty coming out as they apparently were going in? Would they be happy with their new surroundings?

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Cornwall unveils new walking route linking its north and south coasts

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The 87-mile trail follows the River Tamar and links with other routes to create circular walk around whole county

Following the banks of one of the UK’s great rivers, a new walking way has been unveiled linking the north and south coasts of Cornwall and for the first time creating a circular walk around the whole of the county.

The 87-mile (140km) Tamara Coast to Coast Way broadly tracks the River Tamar, which forms most of the border between Cornwall and Devon, taking in landscapes ranging from wooded valley to rolling farmland, heather-covered moors and areas shaped by the region’s mining history.

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Seine to open for public swimming after Paris Olympics, mayor says

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Three monitored river bathing zones in the French capital will open in 2025, said the mayor, Anne Hidalgo

A quarter of a century after the late president Jacques Chirac promised Parisians they would be able to swim in the Seine within three years, the French capital’s mayor has confirmed three river bathing areas are to open in the city in 2025.

The sites – opposite the central Île Saint-Louis in the centre, by the Quai de Grenelle in the 15th arrondissement to the west, and at Bercy in the eastern 12th arrondissement – will be monitored by lifeguards and marked by buoys, Anne Hidalgo said on Sunday.

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Concern over Loch Ness low water levels amid UK dry spell

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Fishery board reports shrinkage in size of River Ness as water scarcity alert issued for parts of Scotland

Concern has been raised about the water levels of Loch Ness and the River Ness amid the protracted dry spell affecting Scotland and the rest of the UK.

Brian Shaw, the director of Ness District Salmon Fishery Board, said there had been a dramatic shrinkage in the size of the River Ness. He told the BBC: “These conditions are not normally good for angling.

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30 water treatment works released 11bn litres of raw sewage in a year, study suggests

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Exclusive: Researchers analysed works run by nine water and sewerage companies in England and Wales

Eleven billion litres of raw sewage were discharged from a sample of 30 water company treatment works in one year, new research suggests.

The study aimed to reveal the volume of discharged effluent released from storm overflows by water firms. Companies are not forced to reveal the volume of raw sewage released during discharges. They are only required by regulators to provide data on the number of discharges and the length of time they lasted.

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