‘Use less plastic as it is clogging up Derbyshire rivers’

People in Derbyshire are being encouraged to use less plastic as it is clogging up our rivers.
Two great crested grebes displaying at Ogston Reservoir in Derbyshire, but the offering is a piece of plastic. Picture by Mary Wilde.Two great crested grebes displaying at Ogston Reservoir in Derbyshire, but the offering is a piece of plastic. Picture by Mary Wilde.
Two great crested grebes displaying at Ogston Reservoir in Derbyshire, but the offering is a piece of plastic. Picture by Mary Wilde.

The issue has been highlighted in the national media recently after BBC’s Blue Planet programme aired last year.

And the message is being echoed across the county after Derbyshire Wildlife Trust was sent a photo of two great crested grebes at Ogston Reservoir – near Clay Cross and the source of the River Amber –with a piece of plastic.

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Kaite Helps, of Derbyshire Wildlife Trust, said: “Plastic pollution has been big news recently thanks to programmes such as BBC’s Blue Planet – but the problem is so close to home, not just in far-away oceans and this photo is a stark reminder of that.

“In Derbyshire, plastic is clogging up our rivers and places that should be havens for wildlife. We have all contributed and we all need to make changes in order to prevent plastic waste. Plastic in the environment poses such a huge threat to wildlife because it doesn’t just disappear; it simply breaks down into smaller and smaller pieces. Aside from the dangers of becoming trapped or injured, animals often ingest plastic fragments, with the potential to build up in the bodies of animals right up the food chain.”

Chesterfield MP Toby Perkins said: “Ogston Reservoir is a favourite spot of Derbyshire birdwatchers and it is heartbreaking to see discarded plastic impacting these beautiful birds. It is another powerful reminder that we need to reduce the plastics we are consuming and that we must ensure we properly dispose of all our waste so that it is not damaging our wildlife.”