An environmental group's Freedom of Information request has revealed that none of Yorkshire's most protected rivers have been fully tested in years.

Of the six rivers two (the river Derwent and the river Ribble) have been partially tested and the river Ure, the river Wharfe, river Idle, and the river Hull Headwaters haven't been tested at all.

The rivers are among 4,000 SSSIs, or Sites of Special Scientific Interest, in England which represent our most diverse and rarest wildlife, aquatic life, and plant life.

The FOI request was made by Unchecked, a non-profit group which looks at regulation and enforcement of our waterways.

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Emma Rose, Co-Director of Unchecked, said: "The UK has a strong track record in establishing world class regulators. These institutions are a critical public asset; they underpin the functioning of the UK’s economy and society and enforce the rules which protect our nature and wildlife. 

"However, many regulators are suffering from a lack of funding, powers, and independence. As a result, over the last ten years, a dangerous enforcement gap has opened in the UK.

"Regulation without effective enforcement undermines the point of having rules in the first place: it weakens the rule of law, erodes public trust and signals to rule-breakers that their actions will go unpunished."

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Linda Richards, a founding member of the Wetherby Clean River Group, explained how important it is for our waterways to be fully tested.

She said: "This is concerning. Local issues like rivers are what really matter to people. The Wharfe river is the artery of Wetherby.

"Our SSSIs have some of our most precious habitats and they need to be tested as they can be indicative of problems in the rest of our watercourses."

A DEFRA spokesperson said: "We increased Natural England’s budget for a fifth consecutive year and set strict targets for water companies to prioritise action on pollution at ecologically important sites like SSSIs."