Somewhat surprisingly, the Thames is the most photogenic of all rivers according to an American travel website.  To demonstrate that claim, it has found that the Thames is mentioned more frequently on Instagram than any other river in Europe.  Even more surprising is a report from the Zoological Society of London which states that the Thames is ‘a rich and varied home for wildlife’ after being declared biologically dead sixty years ago.

            And yet there has been a lot of publicity recently about the discharge of raw sewage into rivers and coastal waters.  There has been passionate debate during the passage of the Environment Bill, now enacted, through both Houses of Parliament with claims that the Government is not taking enough action to remedy the situation, specifically that the powers conferred by the Act are not sufficient to force water companies to stop the practice.  Despite numerous amendments and intense lobbying, the Act only requires the Government to ensure that water companies secure a progressive reduction in the adverse impacts of discharges from storm overflows.