How a farmer caused the 'worst case of riverside destruction' ecologists have seen

River will take decades to recover from 'vandalism'6 hours agoShareSaveAdd as preferred on GoogleNicola GoodwinBBC Midlands InvestigationsEnvironment Agency/Natural EnglandThe River Lugg before and after the damage was done by John PriceAn ecologist says it will take 20 to 30 years for a stretch of River Lugg in Herefordshire to recover after being damaged by a local farmer.John Price was jailed in 2023 for illegally removing tonnes of gravel from the riverbed to build a road and horse yard at his home and tearing out 71 trees. He was ordered to pay £600,000 and to restore the damage he had done. "It's amazing the damage that a human being can do in a very short amount of time," said ecologist Richard Fishbourne. The river in May 2026, three years into the restoration projectThe River Lugg is home to six protected and endangered species, including common otter, Atlantic salmon, white clawed crayfish, brook lamprey, shad and bullhead.It flows into the River Wye, and in 1995 it was made a Site of Special Scientific Interest. District Judge Ian Strongman described John Price's actions as "ecological vandalism on an industrial scale" when he sent him to prison in May 2023. The farmer admitted using bulldozers and diggers to remove gravel from a mile-long stretch of the river by his farm in 2020 and 2021. At the trial, Natural England described the damage as the "worst case of riverside destruction" seen by the organisation.As part of his sentence, Price was ordered to re-plant trees and restore the riverbed and banks, with the Environment Agency and Natural England overseeing his work.Read moreArrest after crash sees newborn taken to hospitalUnseen Rik Mayall material to be shown at festival'Tap room crucial to our survival,' says breweryWe visited the site with Herefordshire ecologist Richard Fishbourne, to see how the restoration project was going. Fishbourne is an environmental designer who helps communities...