Guardian ‘Thames CEO fired. A source said the Thames board and employees were embarrassed by being singled out by the regulator Ofwat as one of the country’s worst water companies. It had the worst record on leaks in 2017-18. Earlier this year, the watchdog ordered Thames to “substantially rework and resubmit” its “unconvincing” plans to tackle leakage and […]
This report comes close on the heels of reports on increased levels of recreational drugs, and pesticides in rivers. This is worrying because of the effects on wildlife but also the implications for water treatment. World’s rivers ‘awash with dangerous levels of antibiotics’ Largest global study finds the drugs in two-thirds of test sites in […]
Bob Earll blog: With the resignation of Theresa May, and the election for a new Prime Minister a great deal will change. Michael Gove is standing in the election for the next Tory leader and whoever wins it seems likely that there will be a major change of the ministerial team and leadership at Defra. […]
Subsidies to restore woodlands and meadows would also boost wildlife, says Rewilding Britain A quarter of the UK’s land could be restored to nature, making a significant contribution towards cutting the nation’s carbon emissions to zero, under a new rewilding proposal. The plan, published by Rewilding Britain, calls for billions of pounds in farm subsidies to […]
Seen in the context of SuDS this is a useful pot of money that put to use to demonstrate the value of trees in relation to mitigating urban flooding. Defra – Government delivers new £10m fund to plant over 130,000 urban trees Environment Secretary Michael Gove announces grants will be made available over the next […]
The Guardian ‘This is a wake-up call’: the villagers who could be Britain’s first climate refugees As sea levels rise, Fairbourne, sandwiched between mountains and the beach, is being returned to the waves. But where will its residents go? It is an almost perfect spring day. The sky is milky blue and there is barely […]
BBC Climate change: Global sea level rise could be bigger than expected Scientists believe that global sea levels could rise far more than predicted, due to accelerating melting in Greenland and Antarctica. The long-held view has been that the world’s seas would rise by a maximum of just under a metre by 2100.’ This new study […]
Is oil and gas exploration moving into ‘inshore’ waters? Is this a developing trend? Close on the heels of the Poole Bay drilling work now this proposal for Cardigan Bay. BBC: ‘Cardigan Bay oil and gas survey ‘threatens wildlife’ ‘An international energy company wants to search for oil and gas in a special area of […]