Half of Big River Watchers spot a sign of pollution

Over half of the near 6,000 people who took part in The Rivers Trust’s Big River Watch spotted a sign of pollution according to the project's organisers.

The widespread reporting of signs of pollution was among early findings from the nationwide citizen science data collection exercise run over a September weekend by The Rivers Trust. 5,871 people took part, conducting 3,600 river surveys across the country.

The reported signs of pollution included sewage, algae blooms and oily road runoff. 175 (5%) said they could see sewage pollution, and 147 (4%) reported seeing sewage fungus.

While 73% said the river they watched looked healthy with 17% describing it as unhealthy and 10% unsure, the Rivers Trust noted appearances can be deceptive.

Healthy looking rivers were found to make people feel calm, peaceful and relaxed, whereas unhealthy looking rivers made them feel sad and disappointed.

59% of the participants were new to citizen science. The next survey will take place in April.