IN A speech to the House of Lords, Lord David Lipsey discussed the deteriorating state of the River Wye, highlighting the decline of salmon, sickness to children and 'rotten egg odours’ which residents had been experiencing. 

The speech came during the second reading of the Water Special Measures Bill, which was put forward in September to help address issues with water quality in the UK.  

A resident of the Wye region himself, Lord Lipsey explained the worsening condition of the river, saying it had been done “untold harm” by pollution allegedly caused by manure from largescale poultry farms. 

Lord Lipsey said: “Residents such as us complain about children who are sick after swimming, rotten egg odours, opaque green pea-soup blooms and brown slime on the bottom. It is not the Wye that we moved next to 30 years ago. This beautiful river is being turned into a sewage dump.”

Addressing the House of Lords, Lord Lipsey also discussed alleged contributors to pollution in the Wye.

Avara Foods Limited, along with Cargill PLC and Freemans of Newent Limited, are facing a legal claim from residents and businesses represented by law firm Leigh Day over the alleged pollution of the River Wye.

The claim alleges that poultry production in the region has resulted in large amounts of phosphorous-rich manure leaching into the river, causing algal blooms which have damaged its condition.