UK rivers near livestock farms are awash with superbugs and antibiotic residues, including in the idyllic River Wye, research by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism has found.

Testing commissioned with World Animal Protection and the Alliance to Save Our Antibiotics has found evidence of drug resistance in waterways near poultry and pig farms and in cattle farm waste, highlighting the risks of slurry leaks contaminating rivers. Combined with previously unseen data released under freedom of information laws, it presents a snapshot of the extent of superbug pollution stemming from farm waste.

The tests found antibiotic-resistant strains of E coli and Staphylococcus aureus, which can cause serious infections in humans, among other superbugs. Some of the samples showed resistance to antibiotics that are classified as “highest-priority critically important for human medicine”. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a serious health threat because it makes illnesses harder to treat.

Residues of controversial medicines known as ionophores, widely used in Britain’s intensive chicken industry, were also found.

There are growing concerns about the health of British rivers and the apparent lack of regulation around AMR in farm waste. In October, the Guardian found wide scale river pollution from dairy farms in Devon, and there has been public outcry over raw sewage dumped in UK rivers earlier this year.

Read more