News stories from 2003

Last updated: April 13, 2006.

Since newspapers are constantly rearranging their archives, many of the links on this page are now broken. If you're interested in a particular story and you can't reach it from the link here, try copying the name of the story and pasting it into your favourite search engine.

14 September 2003: The World Water Debate: An interesting set of feature articles, quizzes, maps, and debates from BBC News.

2 November 2003: Tide turns for London's canals: After years of neglect, London's canals are spurring urban regeneration.

14 September 2003: USA: White River: 1000 pitch in for river cleanup: People are at it worldwide, all the time -- proving they care enough about rivers to spend their time heaving out tons of rubbish.

New UKRN book hits the shops!: The Atlas of US and Canadian Environmental History (New York/London: Routledge, 2003) has just hit the shops. The UK Rivers Network contributed about a dozen articles on the history of the North American environment.

World at Risk: A Global Issues Sourcebook (Washington, DC: Congressional Quarterly Press, 2002) has won a prestigious Outstanding Academic Title award from the American Library Association's Choice magazine for its "analytical excellence". The UK Rivers Network contributed a number of chapters to the book, including Freshwater, Pollution, and Global Warming.

14 September 2003: High risk of toxic ghost ships leaking: Old ships packed with toxic cargo are heading to Teeside from the USA for breaking; they contain the highest possible risk of hull leakage, according to Friends of the Earth.

14 September 2003: USA: White River: 1000 pitch in for river cleanup: People are at it worldwide, all the time -- proving they care enough about rivers to spend their time heaving out tons of rubbish.

14 September 2003: Jamaica: White River Valley: A photographer's paradise: At every turn of the river, another breathtaking vista appears as these visitors ride the gentle flow on inflated rubber tubes.

12 September 2003: Ozone hole reaches record size: The ozone hole is now twice the size of Antarctica.

10 September 2003: River Clyde: Floating bulldozer cleans up pollution: Glasgow City Council is employing the "Water Witch" to clean up one of Scotland's less attractive rivers.

8 September 2003: River Tyne: Poachers threaten salmon: The Environment Agency has warned about an increase in poaching in the North East of England, especially on the Tyne.

1 September 2003: River Wye: New laws to protect salmon: New bye laws are being introduced to halt the decline of salmon on the Wye in Herefordshire/Worcestershire.

5 September 2003: River Teifi: Farmers cut costs with toxic sheep dip: Farmers in west Wales are using a toxic chemical for dipping sheep. Suspicions are falling on this as the cause of a dramatic drop in fish stocks in the River Teifi.

26 August 2003: Edinburgh moves to "save" water voles: Endangered water voles are being evicted from their homes in West Lothian to make way for a new housing development.

23 August 2003: Derry Airport poses threat to River Foyle marshlands: The RSPB are fighting to save important marshlands at the River Foyle in Derry.

19 August 2003: India's river plans spark furore: India's plans to link major rivers in the region to provide water to arid states are causing a furore among its neighbours and environmentalists. The plan would involve diverting the sacred river Ganges and the Bhamaputra river.

15 August 2003: Talks on River Dee salmon crisis: The Environment Agency is holding urgent talks over what to do about fish deaths in the Dee.

14 August 2003: It may not look very inviting...: Alok Jha on the rebirth of the river Thames.

1 August 2003: Don't bathe in the Teign!: People are being told to keep off beaches at Teignmouth after a sewage pipe burst.

30 July 2003: Pollution doubles on Cumbrian rivers: A major slurry and silage spill is killing hundreds of fish on the rivers Ive and Caldew.

29 July 2003: Pollution hits Northern Ireland rivers three times a day!: South Antrim MP David Burnside is "appalled" by the information: "These figures are incredibly high and what is particularly worrying is the high level of incidents which are sewage related."

24 July 2003: Troubled waters for Bangladesh as India presses on with plan to divert major rivers : John Vidal reports on the latest international water conflict.

24 July 2003: US stalls on climate change... again: This hardly counts as news anymore! The Bush administration has called for "more research" into climate change. But is more research an excuse for less action?

24 July 2003: Climate change reaches Scottish islands: A new report questions whether life will still be liveable in the Scottish islands as climate change impacts become more severe. More from the British-Irish Council.

22 July 2003: Climate change could wipe out holiday beaches: According to English Nature, the traditional English holiday could disappear over the next century.

22 July 2003: Fears raised over fish deaths: Low oxygen levels and fish deaths in the River Tees are causing concern at the Environment Agency.

21 July 2003: Pesticide review fails consumers and farmers: A new report from Friends of the Earth and the Pesticides Action Network attacks the Government for failing to grasp a golden opportunity to find safer alternatives to chemical pesticides, leaving farmers with little alternative to the toxic products currently in use.

15 July 2003: Use summer water wisely: The Environment Agency is warning householders about sprinklers and other water waste over the summer.

15 July 2003: Farmed salmon contained Sellafield nuclear waste!: In the latest shocker from Sellafield, traces of nuclear waste from the plant have been found in fresh and smoked salmon bought in a variety of British supermarkets.

14 July 2003: Health warning on garden pesticides: Friends of the Earth is calling for urgent action after a new study showed a clear relationship between the use of two commonly-used weed killers and birth defects in children.

11 July 2003: GM crops offer limited benefits: A new report to the Government concludes that short-term benefits of GM crops to the UK will be very limited.

5 July 2003: M25 widening is bad news for rivers: Transport Secretary Alastair Darling's is about to announce the widening of the M25 to eight lanes. That means more traffic growth, more carbon dioxide emissions, more global warming, a more erratic climate, more flooding, and so on. It will also have direct impacts in places where the road already crosses (and already substantially pollutes) our rivers. Read more about the riverine (and other impacts) from Transport 2000.

4 July 2003: Rescued swans returned to river: Swans that were the victim of an oil spill in Leicestershire have now returned to the water.

3 July 2003: Man completes marathon swim: A man who started to swim a 1,243-mile long river last year to protest against pollution has just finished!

19 June 2003: English Nature announces awards: Hay meadows, an estuary marsh and deep caves are among the winners of top green awards announced by English Nature.

28 June 2003: Catamaran launches bay cruises: A Welsh catamaran service is offering bay cruises around Cardiff Bay and nearby rivers.

26 June 2003: Royal Commission hits out an unacceptable chemicals: Friends of the Earth has welcomed a warning from the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution (RCEP) on the "unacceptable" risks posed by man-made chemicals and the urgent need for "fundamental reform" to protect people and the environment.

21 June 2003: Fishermen's friends: It's not just about catching fish, but about being hooked on the scenery, says Andy Pietrasik, in a travel special for The Guardian.

17 June 2003: Conspiracy of silence over Bargoed bypass?: The Green Party claims other parties are refusing to block the Bargoed bypass in Wales -- claimed to have the worst economic justifcation of any road ever proposed! See our spotlight campaign further down this page.

13 June 2003: What do coasts and rivers mean to you?: English Nature wants your help with its short questionnaire. "What do our coasts and seas mean to you? Our short questionnaire gives you the opportunity to tell us why our coasts and seas are special to you and your ideas for improving the way we should all look after them".

22 April 2003: How best to improve sea defences?: The Countryside Commission for Wales has commissioned a report to find out.

3 January 2003: Government failing to address growing threat of flooding: According to WWF-UK, the government is failing to address adequately the growing problem of flooding in the UK. Insufficient investment in the EU Water Framework Directive (WFD) - the European legislation governing water management practices - has left the Environment Agency powerless to provide real long-term solutions.