🌍 Today is World Rivers Day, a reminder that rivers speak for themselves if only we choose to listen.
Here in Priory Vale the River Ray has shown us both its beauty and its fragility. In 2022, a major sewage pollution incident killed hundreds of fish along a three-mile stretch. Plants, insects and wildlife that had taken years to establish were damaged in days.
Rivers are more than water they are living corridors of biodiversity, sustaining birds, amphibians, pollinators and countless species that depend on their flow. Encouragingly, the ecology of the River Ray is slowly restoring, but it remains highly vulnerable to further harm.
“The sorrow of spills and toxic run-off, and surges of sewage. I am a seam of memory.
Echoing beyond limestone hills into a deep time.” Stu McLellan
Protecting our rivers means action:
Reducing harmful chemicals
Supporting restoration and clean-up projects
Planting vegetation along riverbanks
Reporting pollution quickly
The River Ray is part of our shared natural heritage in Priory Vale. When it thrives, the whole environment benefits. On World Rivers Day, let’s listen, respect, and act so that future generations inherit healthy, living waterways.
Read more about the 2022 incident here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-wiltshire-64830604
(Quote and illustration images: Stu McLellan – www.stumclellan.co.uk)
👉 Join local efforts, support clean-up projects, and speak up for the River Ray. Your action today helps protect it for tomorrow.
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