Latest News

SEPA: The Wonderful World of WEF

Wednesday, September 28, 2016

From SEPAView: "World Rivers Day takes place on the last Sunday of September every year. It’s described as “a celebration of the world’s waterways” designed to highlight the many values, and encourage the improved stewardship, of rivers around the world. To mark this we’re looking at the work of the Water Environment Fund (WEF) and how it helps Scotland improve its rivers by removing historic problems and helping return them to a healthier, more natural state."

Click the link below to read more.

Crayfish claw back after River Wye conservation project

Wednesday, September 28, 2016

From the BBC: "Efforts to save the native white-clawed crayfish from extinction in Wales are showing "encouraging" results. Natural Resources Wales (NRW) said an innovative project has seen approximately 4,000 of the threatened crustaceans reared and released here since 2009. The focus is on the River Wye and its tributaries, the last remaining native crayfish stronghold in Wales. Some fear the species could die out completely by 2030. Crayfish are considered a key indicator of the health of our rivers.

Click below to read more.

Why a river in New Zealand is being granted ‘legal personhood’

Tuesday, September 27, 2016

by : "It’s a common lament to hear from freshwater conservationists: if only our rivers and lakes had better legal protection in response to the many pressures they face. In New Zealand, a new piece of environmental legislation is intended to do just that, by taking the unprecedented step of granting a river the legal rights of a citizen.

New lease of life for the River Rother at Catcliffe

Wednesday, August 31, 2016

The River Rother at Catcliffe (and many other places) has been ‘messed with’ for hundreds of years – its course has altered many times and it has been artificially straightened for navigational purposes. The stretch through Catcliffe upstream of Treeton Lane is very straight, heavily silted and devoid of river life. A new scheme will bring a more naturalistic feel back to the river.

Click the link below to read more.

Improvements to the River Dee as part of a £3.5m project to improve habitat for freshwater pearl mussels 

Wednesday, August 31, 2016

Gravel embankments will be removed along 500m of the Allt an t-Slugain burn near Braemar to restore habitat for the rare freshwater pearl mussel and for salmon.

The embankments were constructed in the 1980s to prevent the burn from spilling onto the adjacent grazing land during high flows. However, in some cases embankments can increase flood risk downstream by reducing temporary floodplain water storage. They can also affect the river channel by increasing flow speed and depth, leading to riverbed erosion, and reducing in stream habitat for mussels and fish.

Buffering the bumps – the benefits of riparian zones in floods (Australia)

Thursday, August 25, 2016

This is an article from Rivers of Carbon in Australia: "Water is not the enemy, it is water velocity (speed) that causes the damage.  Australian rivers are meant to be rough and bumpy and riparian vegetation can provide protection from flood impacts along with individual and cumulative benefits to landholders up and down stream."

Read more by clicking the link below

BHS Conference - £120 for a day that includes a session on hydrological monitoring and river restoration

Wednesday, August 24, 2016

You can still book onto the BHS Conference - "Hydrologists make the water go round".

For £120 (non member), £90 (BHS member), £60 (student) you can attend day 2 (31st August) which includes a workshop being organised by the River Restoration Centre on hydrological monitoring and river restoration.

Find out more by clicking the link below

Academic Paper: Evaluating the effectiveness of restoring longitudinal connectivity for stream fish communities: towards a more holistic approach

Thursday, August 18, 2016

This is a paper by Tummers et al. (2016) which looks at evaluating the effectiveness of multiple measures to increase longitudinal connectivity on the River Deerness.

View the paper by clicking the link below.

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