Otters' return shows how nature can be restored

N recent years, there has rightly been an increased public focus on the state of our rivers. Rivers are a vital part of our landscape and there is no question that more can be done to clean them up, but it is worth considering how far we've already come.

- By ERIN MCDAID

Back in the 1970s our own great River, the Trent, was labelled as the second most polluted in Europe behind the mighty Rhine. A report in Hansard of a Parliamentary debate this week in 1970, referencing the state of the Trent, highlights the fact that whilst water quality improvements since the 1960s had resulted in fish returning to the river below Burton on Trent, the river at Burton was still devoid of life.

Against the backdrop of centuries of pollution following the Industrial Revolution and burgeoning urban centres, it is worth celebrating the fact that whilst there is undoubtedly room for improvement things have come a long way.

Given that the Parliamentary discussion included references to sections of the river being unable to support fish, it is no wonder that otters, whose diet is made up of between 70-95% fish, became extinct on the Trent and across much of England by the end of the 70s. They were only able to return two decades later following continued pressure for improvements in water quality, massive reductions in toxic industrial waste and investment in sewage treatment.