Following contact from a huge number of constituents, including school children, as well as tourists expressing their dismay at the state of the River Wear, Mary commenced a campaign to pressure Durham County Council to seek the relevant permissions for work to be carried out to clear the river of unsightly debris.
Following Mary’s successful campaign, which involved meeting with the Environment Agency, writing to Natural England and the government; as well as responding to criticism from a County Councillor – the appropriate licences were issued to the local authority and work was carried out to remove vast amounts of vegetation, rubbish – all while safely preserving the habitat of local wildlife, including otters!
Since the campaign Mary organised a large litter pick to clear the riverbanks of rubbish and has continued to liaise closely with local campaigners and will hopefully organise a series of meetings between key local groups to work together to look after the river and its surroundings.
https://www.thenorthernecho.co.uk/news/22958972.river-wear-durham-cleared-litter-natural-england-approval/?fbclid=IwAR3PIZ2f1aQGiM3VAZfmvja-dfiRJytB0GGoTwoM4tLsck-d2MlJAS13ins
