Author: lewis

Tell us about yourself…

My name is Lauren Razek, and like my name, I am half British, half Egyptian. I grew up between the two countries, and although I’m now based in London, both the UK and Egypt are home to me – or perhaps one is home away from home, but I couldn’t tell you which..

I began a career in international development and sustainability, and while I ventured into different areas of it – urban, rural and environmental development, sustainable agriculture and ethical fashion, it was always within the realm of trying to make things better. It has always been important to me that my work is meaningful and contributes to making the world a better place, even in a small way.

Outside of work, I love stories in all forms, I am a firm supporter of all things geared towards health and wellbeing, and while I love all nature, my happy place is the sea.

You started an ethical fashion brand, can you tell us about that..

I got involved in ethical fashion when I found out about the horrors of the fashion world. I have always liked clothes and accessories, and when I realised how harmful that industry is I decided to shift to ethical consumption when it comes to fashion. Trouble is there were a lot of things I couldn’t find, so I decided to make them! The brand was called Lauren Razek and brought together social and environmental sustainability, beauty, mythology and fashion – all things I appreciate and enjoy. It was hard work, but well worth it. I have put it on pause now because the health of rivers called to me, so to speak.

How did you become interested in river protection?

I have always been drawn to water, and rivers are truly a thing of beauty. Both my countries are built around ancient rivers, and fresh water is life; without it we – and so many more life forms – would perish. And beyond that, these wonderful rivers that give us and other creatures so much, deserve our respect, appreciation and protection.

It is a crying shame that they’re in their current dire state. All of Britain’s 200,000km network of rivers are polluted, and that is simply unacceptable. The rivers in Britain are the lifeblood of the land, and I don’t believe any form of healthy life is possible without healthy rivers – physical, mental or emotional.

Given all that, I was very happy to be a part of River Action when Charles Watson approached me in 2021. When I found out about the extent of pollution in our rivers, I was horrified, and getting involved professionally in rectifying this tragic state of affairs felt like the right thing to do.

Tell us about your role

I am River Action’s Development Manager. I helped James Wallace put together our mission, five-year strategy and goals, and now I ensure our work feeds into our mission and fulfils our goals, I am responsible for the monitoring and evaluation of our work, measuring our impact and ensuring we are on track; I also raise funds to make the work possible. Like River Action itself, I don’t do on-the-ground work, but I help provide the resources and the systems that make the work possible.

In your opinion, what needs to change in order to rescue Britain’s rivers?

Priorities, mentalities and systems. It is outrageous, not to mention extremely short-sighted, that the health of our environment, and particularly our rivers, isn’t a top priority of the Government and industries. That has to change. Laws and regulations to protect our rivers must be enforced, supply chains must change, and we must all be continuously aware and actively care for the health of rivers and nature. I‘m very proud to be part of a team that is working to change those things, and given the impact we have had and the changes we can see, I am optimistic and hopeful. We have to be!

We are absolutely delighted to welcome Helen Browning, the Chief Executive of the Soil Association, to River Action’s Advisory Board! In our latest blog, we find out more about Helen’s life and professional experience as a leading figure in agri-politics and organic farming.

Tell us about yourself…

I’m an organic farmer in North Wiltshire, where alongside a diversity of enterprises
including dairy, pigs, cereals, horticulture and agroforestry, we run our village pub/hotel
(The Royal Oak) and sell our products into national retailers as well as locally. I’m also CEO
of the Soil Association, and a trustee of the Food Farming and Countryside Commission.

What first sparked your interest in river protection?

My father was a great and keen fisherman, and so we spent much of our childhood on river
banks, especially the River Wye where we have long had a fishing lodge. The log books there
detail the decline in salmon over the last hundred years, and especially since the 80s. So
we’ve known for a long time that there is a problem, but that’s accelerated in recent years
due to changes in farming practice, especially (in the case of the Wye) the move to maize
crops and the increase in intensive poultry units. At the Soil Association, we’ve campaigned
on these issues for some time.

You have had a number of roles in agri-politics over the years – including the Government’s Policy Commission on the Future of Farming and Food. What are the biggest changes you have seen in the way that we, as a nation, eat and farm?

Over the first three decades of my working life, it was hard to make progress on the issues I
care most about: the decline of nature due to inappropriate farming, and animal welfare.
Biodiversity has continued to decline, soils have been losing their resilience and intensive
pigs, poultry and dairy continues… though there have been some improvements in welfare
standards, compared to much of the rest of the world. In the last few years, however, things
do seem to be changing, largely because farmers are finding that the chemicals that have
allowed them to ignore good husbandry have stopped working or are under review because
of their environmental or human health impacts. And finally, there’s a recognition of the
importance of soil health; soils in some places have organic matter levels down at 1 or 2%
and that makes them expensive to cultivate. So now it feels as though there are an army of
farmers getting interested in ‘regenerative’ techniques and that’s exciting, if long overdue!

In terms of the way we eat, though, things are still getting worse. Over half of our food is
‘ultra-processed’ even though the evidence is growing that this is terrible for our health. Our
children may be getting nearly two thirds of their nutrition – if you can call it such – that way.
At the Soil Association we ask that every child must have at least one healthy, sustainable
meal each day, and our Food for Life programme works in over half England’s primary
schools to make that a reality. The bottom line is that if we don’t feed people well, we will
continue to pay a very high price by way of NHS costs. Diet related ill health costs the nation
a fortune every year, and our mental as well as physical wellbeing is impacted heavily too.

You run a mixed organic farm in Wiltshire. What drew you to farming and what do you
enjoy most about it?

I’m from a long line of farmers, and I wanted to farm myself from an early age. I grew up on
the tenanted farm that I, these days with my brilliant daughter and son-in-law, now run. I
was lucky to have a wonderful father who didn’t see my being a girl as a barrier, and gave
me an early opportunity to take on the tenancy. I’ve always loved being outside and active,
working with animals and the land, and having the freedom that running your own business
brings… along with all the responsibilities and pressures, of course!

What role do farmers and the agricultural industry play in cleaning up our rivers?

We need to ensure that we aren’t polluting them, for a start! This can happen in a number
of ways, such as inadvertent slurry seepage from land or storage facilities, or through soil
run off if land isn’t always protected by a growing crop; maize and potatoes leave the land
especially vulnerable to this. If more nutrients, whether from animals or artificial fertilisers,
come onto the farm than go off the farm in food, then the system is likely to leak nitrogen
and phosphates into drainage channels that end up in our streams and rivers. So having the
right number of animals for the land that’s available, only applying fertilisers if they are
really needed, investing in good manure storage and never leaving soil bare especially on
slopes are sensible precautions. We may need to invest in fencing off waterways to prevent
animal access, or plant woodlands along banks to protect them further. And reduce our use
of agrochemicals as much as possible, as these may also impact on river life.

Having stopped the pollution, we can help with the clean up in some places by creating
wetlands that allow nutrients and silt to be cleansed out of waterways, while creating
opportunities for wildlife too. This can also slow water flow, which can prevent flooding
downstream and maintain water levels during dry times.

Most of these activities require investment, so we need to ensure there are the funds
available to help, and in the case of overstocking, to incentive farmers, who may have spent
much capital in good faith, to change their system while maintaining their livelihoods.

In 2011, you were appointed as the Chief Executive of the Soil Association. Tell us more about the charity and the part that you play in campaigning for sustainable food, farming and land use.

The Soil Association was founded in 1946, to research and communicate the ‘vital
relationship between the health of soils, plants, animals and people’. Today we have five big
goals:

• Every farmer to have a resilient and profitable pathway to agroecology/nature
  friendly farming
• Every forest to be regeneratively managed for the benefit of climate, nature and
  people
• Every child to have at least one healthy and sustainable meal a day, setting the
  habits of a lifetime
• Local food system leaders are well supported nationally, so they can scale up their
  impact
• Organic food is available, affordable and desirable to everyone.

We are an unusual charity, to be working on so many fronts, and in so many ways: through
practical work on the ground, influencing and advocacy, advice, training, standards setting,
and running major programmes like Food for Life, Sustainable Food Places, and Innovative
Farmers. We also have within the Soil Association group the SA Land Trust which will accept
farmland that donors wish to continue under enlightened management after their lifetimes;
Soil Association Certification, which provides confidence to consumers through auditing to
organic standards, and for forests, to FSC and PFRC standards. Our latest addition is Soil
Association Exchange, which measures the ecological impacts of farming, advises farmers
how they can improve their performance and seeks to find financial rewards for them for
doing so.

Even from this short resume, you can tell that I’m never bored, and always have more to get
my head around than I have the time to do! Which I guess is why I’m still here. It’s such a
fantastic team, ambitious for change, and constantly exploring new ways of achieving that.

And finally, In your opinion, what needs to change in order to rescue Britain’s rivers?

We need to massively reduce pollution from farming and human waste. This will require
investment and long-term commitment from society and our political leaders, both
nationally and locally.

Henley local Dave Wallace wanted to do something about pollution in his local river. With the help of River Action, he’s made the move from concerned citizen to citizen scientist – and now he’s hooked. Here’s his story:

This article is written against a backdrop of increasing anger about the dire state of the UK’s water industry and how lack of investment has polluted our rivers and seas. Just 14% of the UK’s rivers are in good health. The abuse of our waterways can only damage us all in the long run. Water is a precious resource. It is a story of action and the positive contribution of Citizen Science.

I grew up in the water – having lived my early days in Kenya and Fiji.

As a pre-teenager, I ended up in Reading. Swimming was then in my local pool. I can still with ease recall the acrid Chlorine smell. I had been spoiled. The Pacific Ocean in the late 1970s was still a pristine wilderness. Indoor swimming pools had less appeal.

I stopped swimming.

When I was a teenager, my brother gave me a book to read; Waterlog by Roger Deakin. It was a diary of his wild swims all over the British Isles. It captivated me and left a lasting impression.

But it didn’t manage to persuade me to go swimming. The book sat on my shelf for decades, gently needling me.

Finally, one day in my 40’s, I found myself donning a wetsuit and, along with friends, jumping into a lake to swim. The sensation of cold and energy acted like medicine to my brain. I felt immediately soothed; I felt at home.

From that moment, every time I went past a body of water, I would assess its swim worthiness, which soon led me to swim in the Thames.

The Thames is a majestic and powerful force of nature. As one of the most recognisable and known rivers globally, its history is the history of England and the UK. London is a world capital built around and because of it. I feel connected to that history every time I swim in the river.

You can feel its raw power.

Just float, and you realise you are on a giant conveyor belt. Billions of tonnes of water push you gently along.

But it is not just the sum of the water, plants, animals and earth that make it up. Like all rivers, it is alive – the sum of trillions and trillions of atoms and molecules bound together. It has a personality; you get to know it as you swim. Anyone who spends time near or on the river knows what I am talking about!

I live in Henley. The river Thames is stunning here, both upstream towards Shiplake and Sonning and downstream towards Hurley and Marlow. There is a stretch from The Flower Pot at Remenham to Hurley, which is almost perfect. It is a favourite place for a dip and where the Henley Open Water Swimming Society meets most Saturday mornings.

There is also the Henley Mile, which provides a stretch of river that is straight enough and wide to be ideal for rowing races. It is the course of the Henley Regatta, one of the world’s oldest and most renowned rowing regattas.

It is also the site of several exceptionally well-attended swimming events, including the Henley to Marlow marathon, a 14km swim every August, which I had wanted to swim in 2022.

I had the vaguest sense that pollution in the river might be an issue – Feargal Sharkey had started popping up on my Twitter feed. Feargal has become the spokesperson for water quality, so I knew pollution was something to be mindful of. Surely, the water at Henley was okay, I told myself and entered the race.

Race day was at the tail end of the drought that hit the UK in the summer of 2022. It hadn’t rained for weeks. However, the water quality was not great and seemed to get progressively worse, and by the time I arrived in Marlow, I was swimming in what appeared to be raw sewage. A fellow swimmer got ill. I posted on LinkedIn about my achievement and mentioned the faecal water I had encountered. A friend of mine saw the post and connected me with one of his buddies, James Wallace, who had recently started as the CEO of River Action, a charity focused on highlighting and addressing the pollution problems our rivers face in the UK. James visited me on a cold winter’s day, and we walked along the Thames. He explained what was happening with the water industry and the calamity facing us if we did not address pollution and water scarcity issues. He confirmed that, in all likelihood, I had been swimming in sewage.

By the end of the walk, we had hatched a basic plan for some affirmative action. James introduced me to the Windrush Against Sewage Pollution (WASP) action group, Peter Hammond, a retired machine learning specialist and Ashley Smith, a retired detective superintendent. In 2022, The Guardian described them as Sewage Sleuths: the men who revealed the slow, dirty death of Welsh and English rivers. 

They had done some sleuthing on the Thames and Henley – what they have found is shocking. Henley’s Thames Water sewage works have occasionally legally dumped raw sewage into the Thames. This happens when the sewage system is overwhelmed due to external factors such as heavy rain.

But that’s not the whole story. Thames Water has also illegally dumped sewage into the Henley Mile. They have been fined millions of pounds twice. The last time was in 2016, when they illegally released almost 4 million litres (or 1.5 Olympic pools) of untreated sewage, resulting in mass fish deaths (they were fined £2.3m for this breach in 2021). But that is not the total picture. Pete and Ash have good evidence that there have been many other unreported occasions of raw sewage finding its way into the Thames on the Mile.

But they also legally discharge ‘treated’ wastewater daily, headed into the Thames all along the Henley mile through a series of streams. This polluted water is not treated for E-coli or Enterococci or stripped of phosphates or nitrates, which have a major ecological impact. This was news to me.

I assumed that the water coming out of sewage works would be highly treated and pollution few. Maybe not good enough to drink, but not far off.

Pete and Ash had oodles of evidence to support their claims. The graphs and analysis they showed hit home, so I volunteered to get tangible proof to add to what Pete and Ash had found.

Supported by River Action, it was decided that we would do testing on the Henley Mile for a whole month. It would be the most intensive testing on a single stretch of river that had ever been undertaken.

River Action paid for the kit we needed and the lab analysis that would be undertaken to check for levels of E Coli and Enterococci. Along with my wife Jacqui, and good friend Chloe Marsh, we were trained by Tim Harris – a consultant who has also worked with the Rivers Trust on water quality projects – on collecting samples in the most contaminant-free way possible.

Additionally, Soraya Wooller from Earthwatch Europe’s FreshWater Watch programme provided test kits and training so we could test for Nitrates, Phosphates and water turbidity (how clear the water is). Soraya’s kits delivered readings within minutes, which could be uploaded to an app (along with observations) from the river bank.

Tim selected two sites for us to test on the Henley mile, and with the training over, we, the Henley River Action Group, started.

Every working day for a month, we visited the designated spots, collected samples, tested the water and made observations.

Our samples were whisked off by a courier every day and tested, and we started to build a picture of the river’s health.

What we found was depressing.

• The E-coli and intestinal enterococci test results showed a significant deterioration in water quality after a rainfall event, taking the overall status at both test locations from ‘good’ to ‘poor’.
• Levels of e-coli were four times higher than had been recorded in the sampling from the start of the testing period. The levels recorded meant that the water in Henley would have posed a significant health risk to all water users, especially swimmers.
• The data collected led Tim Harris to conclude that “point source” inputs and not diffuse runoff are the main cause for the bacterial load in the Henley stretch of the river Thames.
• Phosphate and nitrate testing results indicate that the River Thames at Henley is excessively nutrient enriched and in a very poor ecological condition.
• 34 out of 40 phosphate results recorded were 0.2 mg/l or above. 37 of the 40 nitrate samples measured levels of 2 mg/l or above. Any phosphate reading of 0.1 mg/l or above or nitrate reading of 1 mg/l or above is considered ecologically damaging for rivers.

The results of our testing are being shared widely in the local and national news. River Action and Earthwatch are using this evidence to raise awareness and hold Thames Water to account. It feels good to know that the work of our small band of citizen scientists has had such an incredible impact.

The other outcome was that we connected more deeply with the river.

By visiting and studying it daily, we got to know it intimately. We saw this magnificent river endeavouring to do its best. Despite its ill health, it was still a home, a nursery, a refuge. A larder. A place of enjoyment, solace and reflection. Also, a place of competition.

We watched goslings and ducklings materialise and grow shepherded by apprehensive parents. As time went on, we started to see evidence of fish fry.

One day we spent ten minutes looking at a pike on the muddy bottom. It looked like it was in suspended animation, waiting patiently for a potential meal to swim by. With a flick of its tail, it reanimated and disappeared, leaving nothing but a muddy cloud. It was mesmerising.

We saw dragonflies and plant life on the banks and in the river. We watched as preparations for the Regatta got underway, and young people, having finished exams, appeared on the river bank to enjoy the warm sun, swimming and each other’s company. We watched contented boaters and dog walkers.

Our last day of testing was the first day of the Regatta, so we saw some racing.

It is a busy place. But it is truly enriching.

The Henley Mile is exquisite. It is so beautiful.

But sewage is being discharged into it every day.

The testing has opened my eyes to its struggle. It is sick, and we have the evidence to prove that fact. We are treating this mighty river with contempt. It is abused, and to what end? Without the river, Henley is nothing. We are nothing.

We have to start treating our waterways with the respect they deserve. Solving the problem will require policy changes and innovative technologies, but the power of community-based initiatives should not be underestimated.

The Thames needs our help. We have our stretch of river and intend to champion it.

Meet Lindsey Cole: a cold water swimmer, adventurer, environmentalist, writer and speaker.  Following her progress with her new children’s book, The Mermaid, the Otter and the Big Poo, we recently caught up with Lindsey to find out more about her life, work, and what drives her to rescue Britain’s rivers. 

Tell us about yourself

I’m Lindsey, an endurance environmental mermaid, children’s author and writer.  I have a big love for swimming in rivers, seas and lakes. 

What first sparked your interest in river protection?

I was learning to free-dive in Indonesia and thought I’d stung my hand on a jellyfish which was blobbin away, but it was actually a small bit of plastic. At a similar time, a giant sperm whale washed up dead down the shore. His belly was stuffed with all sorts of plastic. Having had a career as an adventure for over a decade, exploring some of the most spectacular parts of the world, I wanted to do something about it.

I returned home, to swim the length of the Thames as a mermaid, with a large mermaid sculpture made from recycled plastic bottles, to highlight the issue. Along the way, I rescued a drowning cow and ended up on page 3 of a national tabloid. A school asked my permission to turn my story into their school play and invited me along. It was adorable, so I turned it into a children’s book. Whilst touring the country with The Mermaid and the Cow, I discovered just how much kids love mermaids and how being one is a great tool to discuss serious issues with them in a fun and engaging way. I’ve now come up with a series, which I’m mega chuffed about because it marries my love of adventure, storytelling and the environment.  

You have a background in journalism and documentary-making.  What are some of the stand-out adventures that you have had with these roles?

I’ve always been curious and interested and a bit of a daydreamer. After I left uni, I had no idea what I wanted to do so gave myself 5 years to work it out whilst travelling and working abroad. After breaking my leg in Australia, whilst living in a van, a kind group of aussies took me in. All i could do was watch films and read books and it gave me time to reflect. I realised I loved learning, exploring and meeting interesting people so embarked on a career in journalism. 

My favourite role was being a producer/director for a BT Sport documentary series on the charities that they funded. This took me all over the world to the Indian jungle, South African Cape Flats and Brazilian favellas, where sport is used to help disadvantaged people better their lives. It was truly inspiring. 

You are now working on a series of environmental mermaid adventure swims, children’s books and films. The Mermaid, the Otter and the Big Poo is the second in the series.  Tell us more about the story and what inspired you to create it.

Nine months after The Mermaid and the Cow, river pollution was making a lot of noise in the news. I had depression at the time and wasn’t in a great living situation and needed an adventure to help motivate me- adventure is very much my medicine. I mermaided the length of my local river- Bristol Avon, towing a giant poo sculpture, investigating how river pollution affects wildlife like otters. I threw the project out into the ether for help to make my poo sculpture, canoe support and anyone interested to talk about river pollution and was flooded with interest and support. It was beautiful. 

And finally, in your opinion, what needs to change in order to rescue Britain’s rivers?

There’s so much that needs to change. The big one starts with the government and their relationship with polluters. It’s astonishing that in 2023 polluters are getting away with their crimes. But, it is such a big and complex problem. Our sewage system cannot cope with the increase in population, new houses, paved driveways etc. I don’t understand how shareholders are able to make such significant profits if the service that we’re paying for isn’t working. I wish that our British water could be owned by us, the British public. 

It may be a complex task to fix, but it is possible to fix. Famed for its swimming culture, Copenhagen harbour hasn’t always been welcoming. Wastewater was piped were people now swim and industrial waste, oil spills and Dead fish were a common sight. In the late 90s, the city spent about $440 million to reroute the Copenhagen’s wastewater, built overflow barriers and create underground water storage vessels, making it not just safe for swimmers, but wildlife, tourism and the economy. They also have a sophisticated alarm system that predicts when and where an overflow will happen. So it is possible. We just need people at the top to care. We’ve seen in the last few years that enough public care. 

Wouldn’t that be wonderful. To have a culture of swimming in city centres through the UK all year round and for people to delight in that thought rather than feel nauseous thinking about it. 

Lindsey Cole, June 2023

 

We are absolutely delighted to welcome Prof Alastair Driver, the Director of Rewilding Britain, to River Action’s Advisory Board! In our latest blog, we find out more about Alastair’s life and professional experience as one of the most experienced river and wetland conservationists in the UK.

I’ve been immersed in rivers and streams since I was knee-high to a heron. As a young boy with a charismatic naturalist father and a playground in the middle of nowhere on the Cotswold scarp between Gloucester and Stroud, it was inevitable that if I wasn’t chasing butterflies with a net twice my size, or clambering up the majestic local Elm trees, then I could be found – admittedly largely unsuccessfully – trying to catch an elusive eel, or being a highly inefficient beaver, trying to dam the local stream.

By a huge stroke of luck, my degree in Ecology at Lancaster University led immediately into a Manpower Services Commission contract carrying out wildlife surveys of the rivers and streams of Gloucestershire throughout the blissful summer of 1978. One thing led to another and I found myself in the role of Fish Rearing Officer for the Thames Water Authority in 1983 responsible for, amongst other things, rearing Atlantic Salmon in an attempt to re-establish a self-sustaining population in the Thames catchment. Then I got my lucky break. Within 18 months of joining TWA, I landed their first-ever Conservation Officer job. There were no rules, no budget, nothing. Just me and my dog Tigger. I freely admit I made it up as I went along – certainly to start with! But 20 years later when I moved on to become Head of Conservation for the Environment Agency, I was able to leave behind the legacy of a department of 30 superbly expert conservation staff, a multi-million £ budget, 20 years of improved local policies and practices and a portfolio of hundreds of river and wetland creation and restoration projects, of which of course I am hugely proud.

My 14 years as National Head of Conservation for the EA followed a similar pattern but was of course focused on national policy and strategy. Initially there was a dearth of conservation policy and guidance, I only had 4 staff (the EA total was app 10,000) and the funding for EA conservation was frankly pathetic. But again assisted by a brilliant team, we built a department of over 20 staff with a direct influence on > £100m of expenditure and nature conservation scrutiny of everything the EA did. During that time I also persuaded the organisation to allow me to lead a bid to win the International Riverprize for the Thames based on the whole catchment approach to river management. This focussed on 5 strands – working with farmers to address agricultural diffuse pollution, major biodiversity enhancement through sustainable capital flood defence schemes, creating a strategic river restoration strategy for London, reducing storm sewer overflow impacts in the Thames Tideway via the “super-sewer” and mitigating the impacts of climate change on coastal habitats via managed realignment. This showcased many decades of work by many thousands of people from many dozens of organisations and it was the undoubted highlight of my career to receive that award on their behalf in Perth, Australia in 2010 in front of 700 of
the world’s leading river management experts. Less enjoyable was lugging the huge, weighty trophy around Australia on holiday afterwards! I’m delighted to say that the bid team quickly agreed to hand over the $350,000 prize money to a project aimed at reducing human impact on the Yamuna River in India.

In 2016 after 34 years in public service I felt it was time to move on and take up a new challenge, so I dived into the unknown and within 3 months I’d certainly found that challenge, because I had become the Director of Rewilding Britain. My role then, as it is now, was twofold – firstly I travel the country advising large landowners and landowning organisation on rewilding at scale, and secondly I advise politicians and policy-makers on policy and funding to help mainstream rewilding as one of the many tools in the toolbox of nature recovery and climate change mitigation. I haven’t got time here to go into much detail, but in summary rewilding is the large scale restoration of ecosystems to the point where nature is allowed to take care of itself. It involves a spectrum of activity, but one of the really important principles is that it seeks to restore natural processes at scale. And this is where my day-job links perfectly with the aims of River Action UK. We need to be restoring natural river processes at scale to achieve not only a healthy environment but a healthy economy and we cannot possibly do that if we are discharging raw sewage into our rivers, abstracting water well beyond sustainable levels and allowing run-off from huge tracts of farmland to pollute our rivers even further. Rivers are both the arteries of the landscape and its beating heart and quite frankly treating them like sh*t is only going to end one way for us.

In all my years raising money for and overseeing physical river restoration projects, I and my colleagues were driven on by the knowledge – or so we thought – that water quality was improving all the time because sewage works technology and farming rules for water etc were all heading in the right direction, so our efforts would soon be rewarded with swimmable, fishable, drinkable rivers everywhere. How wrong we were. How naïve we were. What has happened to our rivers and coastal waters in the last 30 years or so is a national disgrace. The water companies, the regulatory bodies and successive governments have all let us and themselves down really badly. Now we need to make sure they put that right – and fast – because as every year passes, the challenge and cost of sustained recovery increases dramatically.

It therefore goes without saying that it is a privilege for me to join the Advisory Board of River Action UK. Now I’ve got a chance to help make it right before it’s too late.

Prof Alastair Driver
June 2023