We’re on a mission to rescue Britain’s rivers
Rivers are the lifeblood of our land. Their health is intertwined with our health as individuals and communities, and with humanity as a whole. We would not be here without them, and we are dependent on their survival.
Our rivers are facing an environmental calamity, caused by a deluge of pollution and over-abstraction. We believe however, that this can be reversed and they can be returned to their rightful, vibrant health.
The Problem
Our rivers are in crisis - they are dying and our very life line is at risk.
All Britain’s rivers are polluted. In England, only 14% of rivers have ‘good’ ecological status and zero have good chemical status. Climate-change driven floods and droughts combined with polluted water threaten communities’ health and water supply. Simultaneously, the government agencies tasked with monitoring and regulating rivers have been defunded so polluters profiteer with impunity.
River Action was founded to tackle this crisis. We have devised a solution that goes to the root causes of the problem, using a holistic approach to cascade urgent systemic change across the country.
Our Solution
Our approach is grounded in community-leadership, natural systems and collaborative action. Our five-year strategy has three overarching goals:
- Provide communities and activists with a toolkit that enables them to rescue their local river catchments.
- Enable citizen science groups and NGOs to collect evidence of pollution levels such as excess nutrients and dangerous bacteria.
- Raise public awareness through creative and original content designed to go viral, gain maximum exposure in the national media, and amplify activists’ voices.
- Leverage this awareness to influence the Government and polluting industries through petitions, boycotts, shareholder actions and positive direct engagement between stakeholders.
- Drive government policy enforcement of regulations through taking legal action against the relevant government bodies and creating a charter of best practices for rivers to expedite reform in regulation, incentivise sustainable water management and to enforce the law.
- Catalyse behaviour change in polluting industries to adopt river-friendly practices by presenting them with evidence of the pollution they are causing, pressuring urgent investment in outdated infrastructure, offering nature-based solutions, and leveraging consumer and stakeholder support.
Take Action
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