Recovering our Rivers: Take Action

Do you care about the rivers and want to do more to help them?  

We are becoming increasingly aware of the need to take action for rivers but often we can feel overwhelmed by the scale and complexity of the issues, and unsure where to start.  

Healthy rivers are a powerful ally in reducing the effects of climate change; they can protect communities from flood and drought events, and they bolster the resilience of the natural world. Yet, the majority of our rivers in the UK are far from healthy. They are plagued by sewage, chemical, nutrient and plastic pollution. We’ve heavily modified them and removed natural features so that they no longer function as they should. This makes the effects of pollution much worse and leaves rivers less able to respond to the pressures of climate change.  

We have created a Recovering our Rivers Toolkit, which pulls together existing resources and actions into one place, so you can easily see how you can get involved to help our rivers recover. 

This toolkit contains: 

• Citizen science opportunities 

• Responsible river use 

• Practical activities 

• Campaigning  

• Activities to do with kids

(All activities carried out are at the risk of the individual. Kit, training and health and safety recommendations are provided by each individual organisation and should be followed accordingly) 

Please keep in touch with us if you undertake any of the actions presented in the Recovering Our Rivers Toolkit. We want to hear about all the positive actions people take, and to tell the story of how local people are helping to recover our rivers. Please contact Holly Thompson, Nature Recovery Officer: h.thompson@herefordshirewt.co.uk