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Environment Agency

Using Herbicides to protect our flood defences from invasive plants

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The Environment Agency is responsible for carrying out maintenance work on its assets to ensure they will perform as they should during a flood.

Field team operatives and contractors use various tools and methods to carry out seasonal vegetation management on sections of watercourse that are within a flood alleviation scheme. This work is carried out to aid the conveyance of floodwater during periods of high flows. This allows the floodwater to pass through the scheme as freely as possible reducing the likelihood of a blockage and reducing the flood risk.

Tackling the metal pollution legacy of Britain’s mining history

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Photograph showing contaminated water flowing out of an old mine entrance built more than one hundred years ago.

Metal mines played a major part in Britain’s history, but these abandoned mines are the largest source of metals to our rivers and seas which can seriously harm aquatic life such as fish and river-flies. Hugh Potter, the Environment Agency’s Water and Abandoned Metal Mines lead, looks at the action being taken to address the legacy.

Everything you need to know about duckweed on the River Witham

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Periods of hot and dry weather can be busy times for the Environment Agency as we work to protect not just our water resources; but our precious environment and the wildlife that depends on it.

During these conditions we receive a lot of calls about duckweed in Lincolnshire, particularly on the River Witham. This blog explains what duckweed is, why it is a problem in dry weather and the challenges of managing it.