In the Peak District and southwards, the Dove and Derwent babbles through UNESCO-World Heritage sites. In Nottingham, the Leen flows through dense urban spaces. Belper’s brooks and The Erewash meander through an Industrialised landscape, while the River’s Eye and Mease wind through vast stretches of productive agricultural land. They have one thing in common- at some point their water reaches the mighty Trent, whose 271km long journey begins near Stoke-on-Trent and ends in the sea at the Humber Estuary. The Trent is special, it is one of the UKs most important rivers. Its catchment helps feed the nation, nourishes the communities that live on its banks and supports a huge diversity of natural habitats that need both our protection and help with recovery and reconnection
Invasive Non-Native species, sewage and agricultural pollution, urban run-off, increased flood risk, abstraction, plastic pollution, forever chemicals, floodplain disconnection, concreted channels and barriers expose the Trent and its tributaries to many pressures, threatening to overwhelm the ecosystem and the (wildlife) communities that depend on them.
Right now, we are losing the battle, as climate change adds more pressure to a struggling river system. There is a 1:4 chance that England will see a severe drought by 2050. We will see an increase winter rainfall by 29%, with low river flows expected to be 65% lower, but peak flows 30% higher. During extreme days, water is expected to heat up to 7.6 degrees by 2050.
The good news is that there are ways in which we can ease the load our rivers carry. At Trent Rivers Trust we use the word ‘resilience’ to describe how restoring natural processes can help rivers cope with added stress.
The thing about climate is that you can either be overwhelmed by the complexity of the problem or fall in love with the creativity of the solutions.
Mary Annaïse Heglar
Kingfishers, Egrets, European Eel, Salmon, Otters, barbels and Steelheads, White-Clawed crayfish the list goes on…
The Trent and its tributaries attract incredibly diverse wildlife populations.
Much like freshwater bodies, one of the most diverse habitats worldwide, the Trent catchment supports a submerged world of species strange and wonderful.
In line with global trends, wildlife building their lives around rivers and other freshwater bodies, are under threat. These species depend on our rivers being in good health and for quite some time-they haven’t been. Species are under threat at varying degrees. While some populations are stable, others have worryingly declined.
The Trent catchment has seen a range of local extinctions including the Sturgeon and Burbot and water voles are in dramatic decline. The good news is that such local extinctions do not have to last forever. Species such as the Salmon have been introduced successfully through long-term partnerships and essential removal work.
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