Acid Rain
After years of abuse at the hands of the clouds, recent research has shown that some of the UK’s most sensitive lakes and streams may at last be recovering from damage by acid rain.
Due to a 74% decline in sulphur dioxide emissions, a 37% decrease in nitrogen oxides and a reduction in agricultural ammonia, the acidic sulphur in Britain’s water has almost halved over the last 15 years. Tighter controls on emissions and more use of natural gas are the chief contributors to the reduction, with local wildlife benefiting from the cleaner waters.
Some species were particularly hard hit by the acidic rain. Natterjack toads were almost wiped out in some areas because of contaminated spawning grounds. However, following the recent reductions, brown trout are starting to be seen in rivers that they have been absent from since 1988. Even though full recovery will take time, it’s good to see some effects are reversible.
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