River Weaver Floating Pennywort Removal - Saturday 17 August, Winsford

Come along to help remove the invasive, non-native plant Floating Pennywort from the River Weaver at Winsford, Cheshire. This event is organised by the Angling Trust and Paddle UK, working with other partners including Mid Cheshire Stand-Up Paddle Boarding Club and Mersey Rivers Trust.   

Please register in advance if you wish to volunteer by following the link below: 

Volunteer Floating Pennywort Removal Event | River Weaver | Winsford - Angling Trust

No prior experience necessary.  Volunteers are needed on both the land and on the water (if you are a competent paddler with your own SUP, canoe or kayak).  

Join us at Riverside Park, Macclesfield for a load of family friendly activities and learning more about your local wildlife!

Discover what lives beneath the surface of rivers and ponds with our River Safari and Pond Dipping activities. Learn about the local flora and fauna through guided walks, which you can register your attendance via our Eventbrite page. As well as arts & crafts and face painting! 

Come and join us for our next volunteer working party at Harpurhey Ponds, Manchester on Thursday 8 August as part of our work to improve the environment around Harpurhey Ponds and the River Irk.  Meet by the footbridge over the River Irk. 

Please wear long sleeves and trousers due to nettles and brambles plus strong shoes or boots.  We will provide all equipment and work gloves.   No experience necessary - all welcome ! 

Part of the Love Your River Irk programme with Groundwork GM and Manchester City Council.

Welcome to the Queen's Park nature Walk!

Join us for a relaxing stroll through the beautiful Queens Park on Thursday August 8th 2024. The walk will start at 10:00AM outside the Café in Queens Park, Crewe,

Explore the natural beauty of the park, learn about the local flora and fauna, and enjoy some fresh air with fellow nature enthusiasts. This event is a great opportunity to unwind, connect with nature, and meet new friends.

To sign up for this event please register via the Eventbrite link here: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/queens-park-nature-walk-tickets-887623254047?utm-campaign=social&utm-content=attendeeshare&utm-medium=discovery&utm-term=listing&utm-source=cp&aff=ebdsshcopyurl

Don't forget to wear comfortable shoes and bring a water bottle. We can't wait to see you there.

Join us on Tuesday 6 August for a FREE family fun event at Lower Crumpsall Recreation Ground & Harpurhey Ponds on the River Irk, Manchester, M8 5XH

Part of the #LoveYourRiverIrk programme with Groundwork Greater Manchester and Manchester City Council.

We will be working alongside the Bollin Valley Partnership top clear invasive himalayan balsam and help with scrub clearance @ Riverside Park, Beechwood Mews, Tytherington, Macclesfield SK10 2SL.

No previous experience is required!

There is free parking and facilites onsite.

For more infomation and to sign up to this working party use this eventbrite link - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/balsam-bash-and-wetland-clearance-tickets-942044308887?utm-campaign=social&utm-content=attendeeshare&utm-medium=discovery&utm-term=listing&utm-source=cp&aff=ebdsshcopyurl

Join MRT, Lancashire Wildlife Trust and local partners for a day of citizen science on Saturday 13th July at Lunt Meadows as we attempt to record as much wildlife as possible in 24 hours.

The event will feature a variety of stalls and activities ran by the Lunt Meadows team and brilliant wildlife experts, including:

• moth trapping
• small mammal surveys
• bird walks
• wildflower identification
• pond dipping
• dragonfly surveys
• minibeast hunt

For more information, visit the LWT website: https://bit.ly/3KTNv68

As part of Mersey Rivers Week, come along to our free Plastic Free Mersey litter pick and litter survey event from 10am to 1pm on Friday 5 July. 

Please wear old clothes and strong shoes or boots, long sleeves and trousers recommended !  We will provide gloves, bags and litter pickers. 

We will meet at 10am at Spike Island car park, Mersey Road, Widnes, WA8 0DF

As part of our Mersey Rivers Week, come along to the Sankey Valley Park in St Helens to help us manage the invasive Himalayan Balsam plant that has taken over the Sankey Brook !

Meet at 10am at the Sankey Valley Visitor Centre, Blackbrook Road (A58), St Helens.  No experience necessary !

Please join us in celebrating all the data Mersey Rivers Trust River Guardians have collected over the last few years ! 

Please book through Eventbrite (see below). This event is part of our Mersey Rivers Week to celebrate the Mersey rivers and the work of our fantastic River Guardian volunteers.

In the morning, we will offer the chance to have a refresher session on the river for those who wish it at a site with seven of the eight key species.

After the session, we will head to the Brookdale Club. Lunch will NOT be provided, so please bring your own. There will be tea and coffee available.

In the afternoon, there will be tea, coffee, and cake, as well as a presentation to show you all the amazing data you have collected and what that means for the state of our rivers. There will also be some exciting news about the Riverfly partnership website.

Sign up via the Eventbrite link below:

River Guardian Celebration Tickets, Wed, Jul 3, 2024 at 11:00 AM | Eventbrite

As part of our Mersey Rivers Week, join us to tackle Himalayan Balsam on the banks of the River Bollin with Friends of the Bowdon Bollin and the Bollin Valley Partnership!

We will be working in the John of Jerusalem Woods, just off Bow Lane, Altrincham. No previous experience is required!

The meeting point and parking is down the track on the corner of Bow Lane past Bow Green Farm What3Words:///pelting.drones.political

This balsam bash will run from 10:30am-12:30pm. Work will involve hand pulling of balsam plants to prevent it from going to seed and spreading further. Full training will be provided.

The session is outdoors so make sure you have waterproofs and sun protection as needed. Bring plenty of food and water to keep you going. Bring your own work gloves if you have them (we will only have a small number available to borrow if you don't have your own). Please wear suitable outdoor clothing and sturdy footwear. Long trousers and long sleeves are advised to protect your arms and legs, as balsam often grows alongside nettles and brambles!

Himalayan balsam was introduced as a garden plant in the early 19th century and is now widespread in the UK, especially along urban rivers. Himalayan balsam out-competes native species in ecologically sensitive areas, particularly river banks. It grows in dense stands along river banks it can impede flow at times of high rainfall, increasing the likelihood of flooding. Die back of extensive stands over winter can leave river banks bare and exposed to erosion.

BEACON (Bollin Environmental Action and Conservation), hosted by Mersey Rivers Trust, is a group of people working towards controlling and eradicating invasive non-native species and improving water quality within the Bollin catchment, which includes all the tributaries, meres, brooks and streams connected to the River Bollin such as the River Dean and Mobberley Brook.

See the Friends of Bowdon Bollin website for more opportunities to tackle balsam in the area: https://www.f-o-b-b.co.uk/whats/

Register for this event on Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/balsam-bash-at-john-of-jerusalem-woods-tickets-919458223297?utm-campaign=social&utm-content=attendeeshare&utm-medium=discovery&utm-term=listing&utm-source=cp&aff=ebdsshcopyurl

As part of Mersey Rivers Week, come along to our free Love Your River Irk litter pick and litter survey event from 10am to 1pm on Tuesday 2 July. 

Please wear old clothes and strong shoes or boots, long sleeves and trousers recommended !  We will provide gloves, bags and litter pickers. 

We will meet at 10am at the Queen's Road entrance to Queen's Park in Hendham Vale/Smedley, Manchester, M9 5FF

We will be litter picking along the River Irk around Hendham Vale and Smedley, Manchester.

Come along to the FREE Manchester Festival of Nature at Heaton Park, Manchester on Sunday 30 June from noon to 4pm. 

We will be there with our stall showcasing the insect life that lives in the nearby River Irk as we kick off our Mersey Rivers Week.  

Our annual Mersey Rivers Week takes place from Sunday 30 June to Saturday 6 July

We have several FREE events taking place during the week:

• We kick the week off with our stall at the Manchester Festival of Nature at Heaton Park, Manchester on Sunday 30 June
• Volunteer litter pick and litter survey on the River Irk at Hendham Vale/Smedley, Manchester on Tuesday 2 July
• Volunteer Balsam Bash on the River Bollin at Bow Lane in Altrincham on Wednesday 3 July (booking through Eventbrite please)
• Volunteer Balsam Bash on the Sankey Brook at Sankey Valley Park, St Helens on Thursday 4 July
• Volunteer litter pick and plastic pollution survey on the Mersey Estuary at Spike Island, Widnes on Friday 5 July
• We finish the week with our public "Bioblitz" event on the River Bollin at The Carrs Park in Wilmslow on Saturday 6 July