📰 Wetland News - September 8, 2024
Your latest briefing on wetland and water issues.
Wetland round-up
- We’re back after a summer break so you can keep up-to-date with the latest wetland and water related news, research and jobs. If you’d like to receive regular updates on all things wetland, please subscribe to this newsletter.
🧾 Wetland news
🏡 Campaigners march in call for urban wetland
An absolutely wonderful story to start off with! Dozens of people have marched through Hereford, UK, to call for the creation of an urban wetland in the city centre. The march was part of a wider "day of action" organised by Herefordshire Wildlife Trust calling for the restoration of rivers and streams. The campaigners want to turn an old sports ground in Hereford into a wetland nature reserve. Now, I don’t know the details of the site and there may well be complex community or logistical issues that need to be considered, but the mere fact that people are marching to advocate for the creation of an urban wetland has got to make you smile!
🦇 Reintroducing beavers to wetlands benefits bats
Yet more evidence of the advantages beavers can have on landscapes. A new study has found that in England and Wales, bat movements in beaver enclosures was significantly higher than those without beavers.
🧯 Peatlands are burning in Kyiv region
Although the fires discussed in this article may have nothing to do with the war in Ukraine, peatland fires across the country’s extensive peat reserves could become a growing concern. For obvious reasons it’s not likely to attract too much global (and possibly even local) interest, but maybe peatland scientists and practitioners should prepare to be involved when and where necessary in the future.
🤝 Partnerships ensuring restoration of Australian wetlands
Great story on how different private and public organisations - including First Nations people, and state governments - are coming together to ensure the success of wetland restoration projects in New South Wales, Australia. Always good to see these partnerships work, and highlights the importance of involving local communities.
😎 The celebrity Venice show highlighting importance of saltmarshes
Rainforests, meadows, oceans and even peatlands have their celebrity champions. But now there is a high profile spokesperson for saltmarshes: Sophie Hunter, theatre-maker and opera director. Sophie, who is married to the actor Benedict Cumberbatch, is using film, music and several tonnes of salt in a new performance installation to give an urgent plea to save our saltmarshes. “Salt of the Earth” premiered in a former salt warehouse in Venice to coincide with the 81st Venice International film festival and may now tour globally. It is fantastic to see saltmarshes receiving this type of endorsement which can only lead to good things for this vital ecosystem.
🙋♂️ March for Clean Water
On October 26, 2024, in Central London, UK, a march is being held to call for urgent action to address the UK’s water pollution issue. The March for Clean Water is being coordinated by River Action in close collaboration with Surfers Against Sewage and major charities and governing bodies including the Clean Water Sports Alliance, British Rowing, British Canoeing, RSPB, The Women’s Institute, The Wildlife Trusts, The Rivers Trust, Soil Association, and - I’m very pleased to say, Bangor University. This will be a non-party political event and the blame for the pollution in the UK’s rivers is not being placed on one single individual sector of society. If you’d like to support this event, or come along, please visit March for Clean Water.
💰 Wetland jobs
Get in-touch 📢
If you’d like to get in-touch please follow Dr Christian Dunn on Twitter/X (@christiandunn) or Instagram (@ProfChristianDunn), or email c.dunn@bangor.ac.uk.
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