"Supplimenting" a species. Helping expand the endangered white-clawed crayfish population of the upper River Itchen #ChalkStream #conservation #crayfish

Fish live in trees. Sometimes fallen trees need managing, but every bit we can keep in the water is valuable habitat

“Glamorous”

Un-stocked, un-manicured, proper wild catch-and-release fly fishing on the (restored) River Test! We very happily explained this approach on the Fly Culture podcast. Apple podcast podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/t... Spotify link open.spotify.com/episode/6Kgu... #flyfishing #ChalkStream #trout

So long Ofwat, and thanks for all the (dead) fish! www.bbc.co.uk/news/live/c4...

Restoring a dredged river. Awesome result! #RiverRestoration #ChalkStream #conservation #habitatrestoration

Flashback to 2015 when a community restored their local river with almost no budget. An Environment Agency and Wild Trout Trust partnership project @wildtrouttrust.bsky.social

A few tickets left: www.orvis.co.uk/products/uk-...

Out yesterday with @fishtwitcher.bsky.social and came across something private 😳

Yeah… well… why not?! #TikTok www.tiktok.com/@blacky_hims...

Out today doing my “other job”, managing the River Wylye. Seems like every work party we come across new signs from our wild #ChalkStream beavers 🦫🌳🐟 I hold a license but so far haven’t encountered a single problem requiring intervention.

Before ☠️ and after 🐟🌱: This is what makes the job so worthwhile #ChalkStream #RiverRestoration Recommendations from a @wildtrouttrust.bsky.social report, followed up and delivered by Wessex Rivers Trust

bbc.co.uk/news/articles/… Delighted that the 2 main water companies in the Wessex region, Wessex Water and Southern Water are banned from issuing executive bonuses this year. However this is just one step on the journey, with further reform required from the industry and regulators

Without a ‘complete’ ecosystem we’ll always have winners and losers…

We’re #hiring! Join a team creating and restoring some of the rarest habitats in the world, the iconic rivers and chalk streams of the Wessex region. environmentjob.co.uk/jobs/105833-...

A six month old river… 🌱💧

Do you want to work restoring beautiful, iconic, and globally rare chalk streams? Join an innovative, creative, supportive and committed team at the cutting edge of freshwater conservation. Become a Wessex Rivers Trust Project Officer! www.wessexrt.org.uk/vacancies.html

Another year, another UK River Restoration Centre conference. I think will be my 15th. I must be getting old! 😂 River people… ASSEMBLE!

Standing on a buried riverbed! The previous landowner went to staggering efforts to gain a fragment of extra farmable land. But water is relentless, and this field (and the road downstream) are collapsing back into a steep valley. The river always wins

This is why the way government subsidises farming matters. Farmers don’t want to lose their valuable topsoil any more than we want it polluting nearby watercourses. Both have economic impacts. It’s not “woke” to pay for nature-friendly agriculture, it’s a sensible investment.

Humans are rubbish at joining watercourses to the sea

The treasury are meeting with the Environment Agency and Natural England today to discuss cutting red tape and streamlining environmental permits. Hopefully that includes better processing of Flood Risk Activity Permits (FRAPs) for habitat restoration projects - which is currently a disaster!

I was pleased to help out and feature some of my excellent team’s work in the recent CaBA Chalk Streams Restoration webinar: youtu.be/VlEHqsUAg7g?... #RiverRestoration

The Chalk Stream Recovery Pack is a DEFRA document outlining the policy roadmap to protect and restore England’s unique chalk streams. It exists. It was set for publication in 2023. The government shelved it. Now there is a petition to publish it: petition.parliament.uk/petitions/71... Sign up 💙

Some New Forest streams are literally eroding into trenches before our eyes; stripped of gravel by historic straightening work 😢 Today I met the unsung heroes who’ve been steadily restoring them despite fierce opposition in one of the UKs most politically charged landscapes 👏🏻

Out today with the Wild Trout Trust checking up on another wilding #ChalkStream #RiverRestoration on the iconic Bourne Rivulet, delivered in partnership with Wessex Rivers Trust River adapting well, salmonids spawning. Can’t wait to see it when the plant life returns!🌱🐟

I was recently given the opportunity to explain river restoration on the Rewilding the World podcast. What do people think? Anything missed? Apple podcast link: podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/r... (Spotify link to follow)

What a year! Back to the office next week to reset the clock and start the race to deliver 2025’s river restoration projects #RiverRestoration

“It actually means we can end this problem of sewage going into rivers.” Yeah good luck with that 🙄 #BlindOptimismToTheRescue www.bbc.co.uk/news/article...

A tree falls in the woods… And a geology lecture ensues! x.com/blacky_himse...

Some guy made this floor into an Alaskan river and I want an English chalk stream equivalent! #Salmon #ButWhy

Sometimes… It has the gradient, It has the gravel, It has the potential, It just needs some random complexity! #ChalkStream #RiverRestoration #WhatWouldAStormDo

Before/After 1 month apart 🔹Un-straightened 🔹Un-widened 🔹Bank lowered 🔹Self-cleansing flows restored #ChalkStream #RiverRestoration on the River Test, Hampshire.

Fallen Tree Analogues (FTAs) Whether it’s the icing on the cake of a large-scale restoration, a bit of habitat enhancement, or just plain river management, there’s no more cost-effective and impactful an intervention. Go big, go brave, go complex! #RiverRestoration #FishLiveInTrees #GoBigOrGoHome

A brand new river! A 400m new channel bypassing a (now redundant) weir, and replacing a (now in-filled) heavily degraded channel. Winter floods will bring the seeds, spring will bring plant growth. Nature will finish it for us! 🌱💧 #ChalkStream #RiverRestoration #FishPassage #WillTravelForGravel

Hi Bluesky! Joining the great X emigration in search of what Twitter used to be (fingers crossed). I’ll be posting all things related to my river restoration/conservation work. Let’s talk…