In the seventies, Liverpool's the River Mersey was declared "biologically dead". Now it has five kinds of shark
Fishing on the River Mersey, by Ministry
A positive and constructive story about how we can restore nature by controlling pollution and managing externalities, even when the conditions seem hopeless. It’s about the recovery of the Mersey River from being 100% “biologically dead”. A flurry of news stories tell a different story in mid-January 2023.
From the BBC:
A flurry of shark species have been caught in the River Mersey estuary as anglers recorded a huge surge in fish populations.
Smooth-hound, starry smooth-hound, bull huss, tope, dog fish – as well as eels, sea scorpions, turbot, and smelt - were all found in stretches between Howley Weir in Warrington and Perch Rock, Wirral. The sharks were among 37 fish species recorded by the Mersey Rivers Trust.
The trust said "species diversity" had more than doubled over the last 20 years. The last time a survey was carried out, in 2002, only 15 species of fish were found.
In this latest report, fish caught included cod, whiting, bass, flounder, plaice and thornback ray - among many others.
Mike Duddy, the trust's senior project manager, said the survey results were "amazing" especially as the river was considered "biologically dead" in the 1970s and 1980s.
He said: "The river was full of industrial pollution and sewage, it was possibly the most polluted river in Europe at the time.
"That continued until about 1985 and since then there's been billions of pounds spent on wastewater treatment works in the region.
"That's prompted this remarkable recovery. Everyone says that our wildlife is in decline, that's actually the opposite in the Mersey where wildlife is on this rapid improvement curve."
Mr Duddy said he expected to see even more species recorded throughout 2023 as more anglers take part in the survey.
More here. And from the Liverpool Echo:
Mike believes “the Mersey is now one of the best habitats around, adding: "It’s the best environmental good news story in Europe without a doubt. Everywhere else nature is in decline but in the Mersey the wildlife-ometer is in the red and it’s got loads and loads to go.
“It’s full steam ahead. David Attenborough talks about an environmental crisis but the Mersey is not.”
Mike thinks this could be a boost for the environment across the whole region and into North Wales. He points to humpback whales being spotted off the coast of Liverpool in 2015 for the first time since 1938 and a 10ft mako shark being found in north Wales in 2014.
In the Mersey itself, there are otters, octopus, salmon, seals and even porpoises.