Wildlife Circus

  Many noticed the draining of the water in the filter beds, even though it took place the week before Christmas. I have no hotline to the offshore company who own the site and can only hazard a guess as to why this is happening now.The water level had risen to the top of the filter beds posing a management issue and leaving it any later could fall foul of the bird breeding season. If proposed Environment Agency charges for abstraction and disharge go ahead from April 2018 it could be very expensive to discharge the water  see https://consult.environment-agency.gov.uk/new-charging-proposals-fromapril2018/ There used to be a charge for a discharge permit until deregulation followed Agency staff cuts. Abstraction for small amounts of water became free but this has not helped the environment and our local rivers such as the Crane, Hogsmill and Beverley suffer constantly from low flows. So the Agency have to reconsider but the admin causes a financial headache and ...

  South East Rivers Trust have been knocking out weirs along the Hogsmill to enable fish to pass from the Thames to the source of the Hogsmill at Ewell. The results are impressive and this improvement is at Elmbridge Meadows on the west side of the A3.We went to look in vain for frogspawn in the seasonal pond on the Meadows. Maybe a little too early, although there are records nearer the town centre (Penrhyn Road) from 20.2.15 and at Manor Park 28.2.15. Although with a little egret on regular patrol, the frogs will have to be quick to get to the pond.