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Ribble Rivers Trust Blog
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Natural flood management: working with nature to protect our communities
Natural flood management (NFM) is a flood risk management strategy that uses natural water processes to try and reduce flood risk. When used alone it can have a significant impact on areas that are prone to less serious flooding. It is also very handy for protecting areas where, when flooding does happen, it doesn’t have…
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Peel Park and the Coppice Local Nature Reserve Public Consultation
There are some exciting improvements underway in the next phase of work at Peel Park and the Coppice Local Nature Reserve in Accrington. Ribble Rivers Trust, Hyndburn Council and the Prospects Foundation have teamed up to deliver further work at the site. In 2018 the local council thrilled local residents by purchasing area known as…
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World Oceans Day: our connected rivers and seas
From the deepest depths of the ocean to tiny tinkling brooks, all of our streams, rivers, and seas are connected. But did you know this goes even further? How often do you think about the gleaming blue waters of our coastline whilst you watch rain run down a roadside into a road drain? Or think…
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Safe to Splash campaign to ensure Edisford’s water is safe for all.
Ribble Rivers Trust have launched their exciting new Safe to Splash campaign which aims to secure bathing water status for a local paddling hotspot on River Ribble at Edisford Bridge, Clitheroe. The launch of the campaign for Bathing Water Status is a way of improving water quality for local wildlife and human communities. This campaign…
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Nature; a natural mental health boost
Our mental and physical health have never been more important, with many of us still feeling the mental, as well as physical, impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic. Figures from the Office for National Statistics show that almost 21% of adults were experiencing depression when surveyed in 2021. This is almost double the pre-pandemic figure. Almost…
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Grow Back Greener
An exciting new partnership to deliver new woodlands across Lancashire. Ribble Rivers Trust are happy to be announcing a partnership with Woodland Trust which will see new native woodlands created across Lancashire. The exciting new partnership will support the Northern Forest ‘Grow Back Greener’ tree planting programme managed by the Woodland Trust. A programme that…
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Deeper Connections: restoring Long Preston Deeps
An exciting new collaborative project will see further improvements to the Long Preston Deeps. The Long Preston Floodplain Project is an ongoing partnership between the Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust (YDMT), RSPB, Natural England, the Environment Agency, North Yorkshire County Council, Ribble Rivers Trust, local landowners and the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority. Sited close to the village of…
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Bringing nature home: frog ponds
Have you spotted any frogs emerging from hibernation yet? Now that spring is here, you’ll probably start to see frogs and other amazing amphibians around ponds, bogs, and other damp areas where they are searching for a partner to breed with. In fact, frog spawn is already popping up in many garden ponds. Making spaces…
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A conservation career- life as a new recruit.
Have you ever wondered what it is like to work for Ribble Rivers Trust? Out latest recruit Alice has documented her first few weeks here at the Trust, giving us all the details on what its like to be kicking off a career in conservation! Hello! My name is Alice and I’ve recently joined Ribble…
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River walk routes helping you to explore the outdoors
Our Community Projects and Activities Officer Helen has been racking up some miles this year testing our circular river walk routes and leading them as guided walks. Below she tells us more about some of the highlights of the series of guided walks and her walk recommendations for getting out and enjoying the Ribble catchment.…
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Making sure we plant the right trees in the right place
Planting trees is a vital tool in the fight against climate change. But how do we make sure we plant the right trees in the right place? When we’re planning a woodland, or any project for that matter, we spend a huge amount of time on research. One of the questions with woodlands is ‘will…
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Rivers and trees- 5 benefits for woodlands and water
If rivers are the heart of the natural world, then woodlands are the lungs. Together rivers and trees link up to provide a huge benefit to our environment and help to keep our planet healthy. Ribble Rivers Trust are a data and evidence driven organisation. So, we use careful planning and research to develop and…
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Bats- super spooky or marvellous mammal?
Eye of newt, and toe of frog, wool of bat, and tongue of dog That’s what the Three Witches used for their famous brew in Shakespeare’s Macbeth. But did you know that the Three Witches were probably referring to mustard seed, buttercup, holly leaves, and houndstongue! In ancient times this is what these plants were…
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Health Walks for HEAL
As part of our new Green Recovery Challenge Funded project, HEAL (Health and Environment Action Lancashire), we are working with partner organisations to deliver over 80 health walks in Lancashire by March 2023. Health and wellbeing data for Lancashire has been analysed to highlight the areas most in need of increased access to natural spaces…
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Setting New Horizons for the Lancashire Economy
Ribble Rivers Trust have teamed up with the Lancashire Enterprise Partnership at two of their recent conferences. For the first time the annual Lancashire Enterprise Partnership conferences gave delegates the chance to plant trees for their businesses. To date, donations through the LEP will enable the planting of 105 trees in Lancashire. The Lancashire Enterprise…
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What is a witches broom?
Lancashire is well known for its history of witchcraft, with the trials of the twelve Pendle witches in 1612 one of Britain’s most famous witch trials. But these aren’t the type of witches’ brooms we’re talking about! Lancashire is well known for its history of witchcraft, with the trials of the twelve Pendle witches in…
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Fishing fun for the Ribble Valley’s future anglers
Local primary schools have once again been taking part in exciting ‘Introduction to Fishing’ sessions with the Ribble Rivers Trust. Pupils from St Mary’s, Chipping and Brennand’s Endowed, Slaidburn have also been busy learning about rivers and their local environment in the outdoor education sessions. The schools fished from the banks of the River Ribble…
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Linking past and present: Lancashire’s mills and rivers
Our county has a long and fascinating industrial history, with generations of families working in quarries, coal mines, and of course cotton mills. Lancashire’s mills and rivers are heavily linked, and without the rivers, industrial boom would simply not have been possible. During the Industrial Revolution the textile industry expanded rapidly. Mill owners were drawn…
