The River Thames is in a 'particularly dire' state according to experts, following an extensive study of the UK's rivers and streams. Conducted by citizen scientists, the research found that three-quarters of UK rivers are in poor ecological health. The data was collected over a period from June 7 to 10, with thousands of people measuring their local water quality for the Great UK WaterBlitz campaign, organised by environmental charity Earthwatch Europe.
The observations were made for nitrate and phosphate levels. These nutrients are commonly present in domestic and industrial waste, sewage, and farm fertilisers. Excessive levels of such nutrients cause heightened plant and algal growth, amplified bacteria rates, and decreased oxygen levels, impacting both fauna and flora in and around the water.
READ MORE: Beautiful South London walk to be enhanced as River Wandle undergoes 14 weeks of work Per the data collated by Earthwatch, an alarming 75% of tests depicted the poor ecological health of the tested rivers nationwide. This percentage rose up to 89% for Thames and Anglia regions. Among all, Hertfordshire and Cambridgeshire had the worst findings, with nutrient contamination reaching unacceptable levels in 91% and 89% instances respectively.
On the other hand, Derbyshire and Northumberland showed the least amount of nutrient pollution, recording 0% of intolerable data sets effectively. Commenting on the results, Sasha Woods, the director of science and policy at the charity, .
