30 Aug 2022

UK Government launch Storm Overflows Discharge Reduction plan / Hundreds of coastal overflow sites ‘not included’ in UK government sewage plan / UK accused of threatening health and marine life on the French coast.      Marine Conservation Society analysis says 600 coastal overflow sites will continue to spill Government plans to reduce sewage spills in English […]

30 Aug 2022

The Environment Agency has released a research report, ‘The extent and zonation of saltmarsh in England 2016 – 2019’ The report examines the overall picture of change in saltmarsh extent in England over a decade: 2006-2009 to 2016-2019. In 2011, the Environment Agency published the first saltmarsh national inventory mapped from aerial imagery captured between 2006 […]

25 Aug 2022

Defra have responded (22/8/22) to the recent coverage around recent surface water flooding and storm overflow discharges, including the claims concerning the faulty sewage monitors in England and Wales. The UK government press office wrote in their recent blog post: ‘Untreated sewage can be devastating to human health, local biodiversity and our environment which is […]

25 Aug 2022

Nearly everyone can identify a pond, but what, exactly, distinguishes it from a lake or a wetland? A new study co-led by Cornell University offers the first data-driven, functional definition of a pond and evidence of ponds’ distinct ecological function, which could have broad implications for science and policy. “The lack of a universal pond […]

25 Aug 2022

Two reported mudflows overflowed the Serayu River on the Indonesian island of Java within the space of a week earlier this year, mucking its waters and killing off fish. The incidents have raised calls from conservationists and fishers for restoration and fish restocking efforts in the river. Fish restocking has been carried out for several […]

25 Aug 2022

Environment Agency CEO calls for “complete gear change” in how water companies and water users think about how they use water.     The National Drought Group (NDG), made up of senior decision-makers from the Environment Agency, government, water companies and key representative groups met again (23 August) under the chairmanship of Sir James Bevan, […]

25 Aug 2022

Chemicals are just one pollutant threatening our freshwater ecosystems. Sewage, plastic, excess nutrients and waste from farmland all contribute to the dire state of our rivers. Environment Agency data from 2020 showed that all English rivers failed to meet overall quality tests for pollution. Not a single river achieved good chemical status, and only 14% […]

25 Aug 2022

Two-thirds of Europe is under some sort of drought warning, in what is likely the worst such event in 500 years.     The latest report from the Global Drought Observatory says 47% of the continent is in “warning” conditions, meaning soil has dried up, the BBC has reported. Another 17% is on alert – meaning vegetation […]