Streamers on the Irwell: Martin’s Minnow strikes again for David James Bendle Getting the green light: new hope for a bottle and can deposit scheme in England and Wales (as well as mutant plastic-munching enzymes to break down PET) Plastic pollution again: we all know the value of river clean-ups, so maybe now’s the time […]
Archive for the tag 'Pollution'
April 17 2018
In the Telegraph: River guardians of the Tame
I’m knee-deep in the river Tame in Stalybridge, 15 miles east of Manchester. Beside me is Woz Andrew, a local fly-fishing guide. After climbing down a flight of stone steps from road level – hollowed by a century of boots and a remnant of this river’s industrial past – we have made our way slowly […]
February 5 2018
Urbantrout sidecasts: Monday 5 February
Finding Bruce the shark: latest community cleanup news from the Wandle … but it’s double trouble for the Hogsmill, and all that fly-tipping in Wandsworth is getting way beyond a joke Trout in the Town: updates from Birmingham and Coventry Defending Richmond Park’s Beverley Brook from urban runoff (Part 2 – here’s part 1) … […]
November 10 2017
Film night: 3 rivers in Blaenau Gwent
Thanks to Tony Mair for the heads-up on this quietly epic and meditative film about 3 rivers in the Welsh Valleys: the post-industrial Ebbw Fawr, Ebbw Fach and Sirhowy: “From clean brooks to rivers orange with waste, the rivers are part of this place. They have passed through forest, farmland and meadow, and fed the […]
May 3 2017
Film night: Pollution hits the Irwell (again)
It’s a sickening experience to see your local river destroyed by pollution, but with the best will in the world there’s nothing very much for outside observers to say or do except sympathise deeply, offer any support that’s needed, and thank their lucky stars that it wasn’t their river… this time. That’s why we’ve been […]
February 13 2017
Pic of the day: Glen Pointon represents the Trent
Given a choice of home waters that includes the legendary Derbyshire Dove and Wye, you might expect occasional Urbantrout contributor Glen Pointon to pick one of those iconic limestone streams to represent the spirit of his fishing experience. But challenged by fellow guide Lewis Hendrie to post a favourite fishing photo on Facebook (just one of several […]
December 12 2016
Film night: Fishing the Battenkill
OK, so maybe it’s mostly a commercial for the latest generation in the classic Orvis family of Battenkill reels… … but this is so much our kind of angle on a famous fishery on the north-eastern seaboard of the USA – relevantly linking a big brand’s manufacturing heritage with the whole very funky, very now story of recovering […]
November 8 2016
Marine plastic pollution: Catch it in your river first!
If Broken Windows Theory didn’t exist, you could almost make a case for not pulling all the shopping trolleys out of urban rivers. After all, when every other scrap of habitat has been dredged out or covered in concrete, even a stray shopping cart can offer shelter for fish and invertebrates from floods and predators… … […]
May 23 2016
Urbantrout sidecasts: Monday 23 May
David West Beale fishes tenkara on the Wandle Defra’s press release about new fish passage legislation highlights the economic benefit of surprising urban fishing hotspots Not just Trout in the Town: new bugs move into Sheffield’s newly-deculverted stretch of the Porter Brook (and a multi-million pound STW project will make the Don cleaner too!) Tackling […]
April 6 2016
UK River Prize 2016: Wandle wins urban category
Here at Urbantrout, it’s no secret that the River Wandle is very close to our hearts (in fact it’s right across the road from where we’re tapping out this blog post in the depths of south London). So it’s been quite a buzz to hear that the Wandle Trust’s work on the Carshalton arm of […]
