With a month to go before the UK river fishing season opens, I was devastated to see that another pollution event has wiped out the recovering fish population of my little local River Cut. A few years ago oil cleaning fluid was being released down the drains of the upstream industrial estate, coating the banks and bottom of the river, killing thousands of fish.

This time there was no tell tale smell of oil, only the sight of dead fish coating the bottom of the river, or trapped by branches as they drifted downstream.

Looking down into the river from a road bridge, I could see hundreds of fish from one ounce to over a pound in the mirke, chub, roach, dace and gudgeon, even a tench on its side in the margins.

In the last few days of the season in March, I had an enjoyable stick float session catching healthy chub and roach. It is hard to think that these fin perfect fish are down there rotting somewhere.

Even when I was catching these fish, Thames Water had pollution booms out across the river upstream and I took a picture of the mud at the edge of my swim. It was oozing oil.

Unfortunately we live in a selfish society, where the majority of the population are disconnected from the natural world, not knowing, or caring that a roadside drain eventually finds its way into a living, balanced ecosystem. This is the result.