River Wear in Durham to be cleared of litter after Natural England approval

A litter-strewn section of the River Wear is set to be cleared of debris after a local campaign.

Durham County Council will start work this month to remove the plastic, bottles and food wrappers from the waterway after the authority was given permission by Natural England.

Dead fish and birds, traffic cones, litter and bicycle wheels have all been seen floating in the river by residents and tourists despite the council conducting daily litter picks along the river.

Around 42 tonnes of material was removed last year and the council has created an annual budget to carry out material removal. A report commissioned by the authority confirmed that work costing around £1.5million is required.