The Stream, March 11, 2025: Beavers Run Wild in England Again; Tribe Fights Potassium Mine in Brazilian Amazon

Torrential rains caused deadly flooding and extensive damage in eastern Spain at the end of October 2024. Photo courtesy of U.S. Geological Survey Landsat 8/NASA

YOUR GLOBAL RUNDOWN

In an effort to revive England’s freshwater ecosystems, it will soon be legal — for the first time in centuries — to release beavers into the nation’s waters.
A multibillion-dollar potassium mining project southeast of Manaus, Brazil, is being challenged by an Indigenous community for its potential to harm Amazonian rivers and lakes.
Nearly a foot of rain fell on Bahia Blanca, Argentina, in a matter of hours this week, killing at least 10 people.
At least one official in Valencia, Spain, has been placed under investigation for possible negligence during floods last October that killed at least 225 people.

— Christian Thorsberg, Interim Stream Editor

Fresh: From the Great Lakes Region

Septage Dispute: Septage, a biosolid waste from septic tanks that’s not to be confused with sewage sludge, has long been used by farmers as a fertilizer, Interlochen Public Radio reports. But the material also contains contaminants and PFAS, which have been shown to concentrate in runoff and pollute adjacent soils and water bodies. The U.S. EPA has no standards for PFAS in biosolids used as fertilizer, though states are stepping in — Maine banned the application of biosolids in 2022 after several farms were “rendered unfarmable,” and Michigan could be next. A local septage dispute in Leelanau County has some landowners demanding more legal accountability for growers of all kinds.

Canadian Mayors Excluded from White House: The annual Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative meeting, held at the White House in celebration of Great Lakes Day, had some notable attendees (244 U.S. mayors) and absences (any mayor from Canada), CBC News reports. The White House cited a lack of time to process Canadian officials’ requests, though others, reading between the lines, speculate the snubs are related to the two nations’ tariff stand-off. Conservationists hope that the trade-related tensions have no further effect on binational collaboration to safeguard and conserve the world’s largest source of surface freshwater.

Bridge Michigan, Circle of Blue, Great Lakes Now at Detroit Public Television, Michigan Public and The Narwhal work together to report on the most pressing threats to the Great Lakes region’s water. This independent journalism is supported by the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation. Find all the work here.

Ontario election results: what Doug Ford’s third win means for the environment — The Narwhal
Michigan imposes new restrictions, testing requirements on UP copper mine — Bridge Michigan
What a recent Supreme Court ruling could mean for the future of the Clean Water Act — Great Lakes Now
Michigan’s landfills have 21 years before they’re full. Recycling more can extend their lifespan. — Michigan Public

The Lead

Five months after catastrophic flooding in Valencia killed at least 225 people, a Spanish court has placed Salome Pradas, the head of the city’s emergency services, under investigation, Reuters reports.

Many consider the authority’s actions just before and during the floods to have been lethargic and incomplete — not alerting residents in enough time, nor clarifying the storm’s potential impacts. A mass-text urging people to take shelter was sent by the regional government after 8 p.m. on the night of the floods, well after streets and buildings were already underwater. “More than half of the bodies recovered from the flooding were found in enclosed spaces, mainly inside houses and garages,” Reuters reports.

The investigation’s judge, Nuria Ruiz, will determine if the deaths and injuries that occurred during the flooding are due to negligence. Carlos Mazon, the president of Valencia’s government, “has special protection and can only be investigated by a higher court.”

Recent WaterNews from Circle of Blue

Opinion: Trump’s Attack on Science Drowns Common Sense — Blocking research funds challenges president’s promise of a “proud, prosperous, and free” nation.
Republican Attack on Science Targets Water Research that Benefits All — National Science Foundation grants have been reviewed for ideological influence.

This Week’s Top Water Stories, Told In Numbers

$2.5 billion

Estimated cost of a new potassium mining project expected to break ground at the mouth of Brazil’s Madeira River, which flows into the Amazon River, the Associated Press reports. Among the project’s required infrastructure, yet to be built, are two mining shafts that will reach depths of more than 3,000 feet beneath nearby Soares Lake; a solid waste storage facility; eight miles of road; and a port. But the endeavor is not yet a sure thing: Brazil Potash Corp., the Toronto-based company funding the project, is facing lawsuits from Brazil’s Office of the Attorney General for “lack of proper consultation with the Mura,” the local Indigenous community, “and potential environmental risks, such as soil and water contamination, as the plant will be in a region prone to seasonal flooding.”

Inches of rain which fell in the span of just a few hours in Bahia Blanca, Argentina, a major port city some 400 miles southwest of Buenos Aires, Reuters reports. At least 10 people died in the storm’s substantial flooding, which caused both bridges and roads to collapse. So far, more than $9 million in emergency financial aid has been authorized for the city of 300,000 people.

On the Radar

For the first time in centuries, it will soon be legal again to release wild beavers into England’s waterways, the Guardian reports. Announced last week by the country’s environmental secretary, the new measure is being celebrated by conservationists as a positive, nature-based solution to the nation’s well-documented freshwater pollution crisis. Beavers are a known keystone species in such ecosystems. Their dams and woody homes filter freshwater flows, promote biodiversity, help wetlands retain water, and provide a natural defense against floods. Some farmers, who have already shared symbiotic relationships with beavers residing in private enclosures, are particularly glad the animals’ footprint will soon expand.

The new law is expected to go into effect in the fall. It will require each beaver-release project to publish a 10-year plan projecting how the rodents will impact a given landscape.

Christian Thorsberg

Christian Thorsberg is an environmental writer from Chicago. He is passionate about climate and cultural phenomena that often appear slow or invisible, and he examines these themes in his journalism, poetry, and fiction.