A major funding boost is set to help restore river habitats and wildlife across Yorkshire.

The region’s rivers will benefit from a £21 million investment to remove old industrial barriers that block fish migration and harm ecosystems.

The funding will support a large-scale programme to remove or modify obsolete structures, such as weirs and culverts, that restrict fish movement and disrupt river health.

Anna Gerring, deputy director for strategy development at The Rivers Trust, said: “Addressing barriers to fish migration may be the key project objective.

“But by tackling this hurdle, we are also delivering an assortment of other benefits, including improvements to water quality, restoring natural river processes, supporting riparian habitats and the wildlife populations that are reliant on them, promoting biodiversity increase, and enhancing blue spaces for local communities.”

These barriers are often remnants of Yorkshire’s industrial history, including those built to power mills and other heavy industry.

The collaborative partnership is led by the Environment Agency, The Rivers Trust, and Yorkshire Water.

Together, they aim to restore natural river flows and help fish populations recover.

Yorkshire Water has secured £11.4 million for the project through its environment programme, with an additional £10 million match funding to be targeted through the wider partnership.

The project will focus on opening up 500km of river habitat across Yorkshire over the next five years.

More than 100 barriers have already been removed in the past decade, including Hirst Mill Weir on the River Aire, Stocksbridge Weir on the River Don, and Bowers Mill Weir on Black Brook near Halifax.

Jenni Balmer, deputy director of nature recovery at the Environment Agency, said: “Fish are environmental indicators of the health of our rivers and lakes.

“And right now, they are under pressure from every direction – water quality, water quantity, and degraded habitats.

“Those pressures are growing. Climate change is bringing warmer waters, non-native species, and fragmented, degraded habitats.”

Tim Hawkins, director of strategy and regulations at Yorkshire Water, added: “Investment in the environment is a strategic pillar for Yorkshire Water.

“We can’t tackle artificial barriers or recover rivers at scale alone.

“Working in partnership, however, allows us to operate differently, expand our ambitions and collectively we can deliver what’s right for the environment and, ultimately, what is right for our customers too.”

The partnership, named Great Yorkshire Rivers, includes Aire Rivers Trust, Natural England, Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority, Yorkshire Wildlife Trust, and the Canal and Rivers Trust.

Its long-term goal is to restore Yorkshire’s rivers as healthy, thriving ecosystems by 2043.