Neighbor's Illegal Riverbank Digging Destroys Habitat, Defies Environment Agency

In October 2025, a dispute over illegal riverbank digging in Bolton, Greater Manchester has escalated, with the Environment Agency ordering a neighbor to stop the unauthorized work. Resident Andrea Marland, who lives alongside the River Tonge, says neighboring landowner Sam Bancroft has been digging away part of the riverbank belonging to her, destroying trees and wildlife habitat in the process.

Marland and other local residents have been complaining about Bancroft's actions for the past four years, but the Environment Agency has only recently taken enforcement action. The agency says it warned Bancroft in 2021 and 2025 that he did not have the necessary permits to carry out the riverbank excavation, which he claims is essential to protect his own land from erosion.

Residents allege that Bancroft's digging has severely impacted the local environment, with wildlife campaigner Christopher Banks stating that the work has affected areas used by kingfishers as their main habitat. Marland is "devastated" by the damage, saying Bancroft has created a 90-meter-long channel through her land without permission.

Despite the complaints and warnings, Bancroft continued the unauthorized work until being ordered to stop by the Environment Agency in July 2025. Residents are frustrated by the agency's slow response, with one local saying they "have no idea the damage he has done." The Environment Agency, however, maintains it takes such reports seriously and will take enforcement action where appropriate.