British rivers contain a mixture of chemicals and stimulants that threaten aquatic life | descent

A mix of chemicals and stimulants, including caffeine, antidepressants and painkillers, in rivers in the UK from sewage discharges from water companies are polluting freshwater at levels that could pose a risk to aquatic life, tests have found.

Three days of testing in rivers by 4,531 volunteers from environmental research group Earthwatch found that, in addition to the river's mix of chemicals, 61% of Britain's fresh water was in poor condition due to high levels of the nutrient phosphate. Nitrates occur in sewage runoff and agricultural runoff. The UK has the worst river water quality, with 67% of freshwater samples showing high levels of nitrates and phosphates.

Our rivers have historically been stressed by agriculture and are at risk from outdated and inadequate sewage treatment works, Earthwatch said.

Earthwatch volunteers tested the river over three days in September, collecting a data set of 2,338 samples tested for high levels of phosphates and nitrates. Imperial College London sent 91 samples for further testing for the presence of chemicals. These ongoing tests show that the river is exposed to toxic pollutants, including nicotine, caffeine, antidepressants, antibiotics and painkillers such as tramadol and diclofenac. Sasha Woods, policy director at Earthwatch, said the main source of these pollutants is sewage from water companies' treatment operations.

Woods said the UK's freshwater ecosystem was in a dire state and citizen science data was helping to fill the gap in testing to reveal the true picture. She said the chemical results were shocking and revealed a failure to properly treat sewage.

Woods said 100% of the samples sent to Imperial contained caffeine. This is concerning because it shows either water companies are not properly cleaning sewage runoff before it is discharged into the river, or too much untreated sewage is flowing into the river.

Dubbed the Great UK WaterBlitz, volunteers collected thousands of data sets from geographically dispersed locations across the UK over three days in September. Nitrate and phosphate measurements by volunteers within stream subbasins were based on a minimum of five samples per subbasin.

Acceptable water quality was found to be less than 1 ppm nitrate and less than 0.1 ppm phosphate, which is consistent with Environment Agency values. England had the worst water quality, with 67% of rivers deemed unacceptable or of poor quality, followed by Northern Ireland at 43%, Scotland at 29% and Wales at 21%. The Anglian and Thames river basin areas have some of the worst water quality in the UK, with more than 80% of surveys showing unacceptable nutrient concentrations.

Rivers in West Glamorgan, Wales, and Kirkcudbrightshire, Scotland, had the best water quality measured.

Earthwatch said there was an urgent need to improve wastewater treatment processes and reduce agricultural and urban runoff to reduce threats to vulnerable freshwater systems and species.

The poor condition of many of the UK's water bodies is caused by a complex and interconnected range of pollution sources, including sewage discharge, agricultural and urban runoff, the report said. Earthwatch's evidence about the poor condition of British rivers comes after data from the Environment Agency showed a sharp decline in Atlantic salmon stocks in England and Wales. Salmon are an indicator species, and their rapid decline is considered a warning sign that the natural environment is under extreme stress.

The full analysis of about 300 chemicals is expected to be published in a peer-reviewed journal in 2025. Early results are already building a more complete picture of the chemicals in rivers and lakes.

Skip past newsletter promotions

The planet's most important stories. Get all the environmental news of the week – the good, the bad and the essential.

Privacy Policy: Our newsletter may contain information about charities, online advertising and externally funded content. Please see our privacy policy for more details. We use Google reCaptcha to secure our website, which is subject to the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service.

After newsletter promotion

Many of the chemicals discovered contain concentrations considered to pose a risk to aquatic life.

Of the 91 samples already analyzed, 100 percent contained caffeine, with levels in 80 percent of those samples posing some risk to aquatic life, Woods said.

Nicotine was found in 25% of the samples, and in 7% of the samples it was found at levels that could pose a risk to aquatic life. The antidepressant venlafaxine was found in 30% of the samples analyzed, with 13% of the samples containing levels that could pose a risk to aquatic life.

The antibiotic trimethoprim was found in 10% of the samples, all at concentrations that could pose some risk to aquatic life.

Diclofenac, a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, was present in 11% of samples and all posed some risk.

In 5% of the samples, the fungicide tebuconazole was present due to agricultural runoff.

The neonicotinoid acetamiprid was present in 19% of samples, and all posed some risk to aquatic life.

Earthwatch said the results showed the significant contribution of citizen science in providing a clearer picture of the health of rivers.

Owen Lewis, Deputy Director for Water Quality Analysis and Reporting at the Environment Agency, said: The Environment Agency values ​​the contribution of the UK's growing network of citizen scientists and welcomes the Great UK WaterBlitz and other initiatives that complement its own research, monitoring and evaluation work. . .

We are committed to improving water quality, which is why we are delighted to be working closely with Earthwatch to target our research and help find solutions to the complex challenges facing our water.

What Are The Main Benefits Of Comparing Car Insurance Quotes Online

LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 24, 2020, / Compare-autoinsurance.Org has launched a new blog post that presents the main benefits of comparing multiple car insurance quotes. For more info and free online quotes, please visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/the-advantages-of-comparing-prices-with-car-insurance-quotes-online/ The modern society has numerous technological advantages. One important advantage is the speed at which information is sent and received. With the help of the internet, the shopping habits of many persons have drastically changed. The car insurance industry hasn't remained untouched by these changes. On the internet, drivers can compare insurance prices and find out which sellers have the best offers. View photos The advantages of comparing online car insurance quotes are the following: Online quotes can be obtained from anywhere and at any time. Unlike physical insurance agencies, websites don't have a specific schedule and they are available at any time. Drivers that have busy working schedules, can compare quotes from anywhere and at any time, even at midnight. Multiple choices. Almost all insurance providers, no matter if they are well-known brands or just local insurers, have an online presence. Online quotes will allow policyholders the chance to discover multiple insurance companies and check their prices. Drivers are no longer required to get quotes from just a few known insurance companies. Also, local and regional insurers can provide lower insurance rates for the same services. Accurate insurance estimates. Online quotes can only be accurate if the customers provide accurate and real info about their car models and driving history. Lying about past driving incidents can make the price estimates to be lower, but when dealing with an insurance company lying to them is useless. Usually, insurance companies will do research about a potential customer before granting him coverage. Online quotes can be sorted easily. Although drivers are recommended to not choose a policy just based on its price, drivers can easily sort quotes by insurance price. Using brokerage websites will allow drivers to get quotes from multiple insurers, thus making the comparison faster and easier. For additional info, money-saving tips, and free car insurance quotes, visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ Compare-autoinsurance.Org is an online provider of life, home, health, and auto insurance quotes. This website is unique because it does not simply stick to one kind of insurance provider, but brings the clients the best deals from many different online insurance carriers. In this way, clients have access to offers from multiple carriers all in one place: this website. On this site, customers have access to quotes for insurance plans from various agencies, such as local or nationwide agencies, brand names insurance companies, etc. "Online quotes can easily help drivers obtain better car insurance deals. All they have to do is to complete an online form with accurate and real info, then compare prices", said Russell Rabichev, Marketing Director of Internet Marketing Company. CONTACT: Company Name: Internet Marketing CompanyPerson for contact Name: Gurgu CPhone Number: (818) 359-3898Email: [email protected]: https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ SOURCE: Compare-autoinsurance.Org View source version on accesswire.Com:https://www.Accesswire.Com/595055/What-Are-The-Main-Benefits-Of-Comparing-Car-Insurance-Quotes-Online View photos