The Environment Agency said 80% of river flows were now above normal or higher, with reservoirs showing a good recovery and just 11 groundwater sites below normal water levels - and two "exceptionally low".

BBC: Hosepipe bans: Final four companies lift restrictions

Pesticides and other chemicals that could mimic estrogen and disrupt the normal development of salmon are present in the Columbia's water, Nagler said, but at very low concentrations - far below those used in laboratory experiments.

CNN: Something's fishy with chinook salmon

The need to drill for oil in 5000 feet of water and 20, 000 feet below the ocean floor is a dramatic illustration of how the low hanging fruit are long gone and the lengths to which our addiction to oil will drive us.

FORBES: Looking Beyond The Oil Spill