Herts County councillor and former Stevenage Borough Council leader Sharon Taylor has highlighted the "critical danger" facing Hertfordshire’s chalk streams to a meeting of county councillors.

Estimates have suggested there are around 200 chalk streams in the world.

Yet 10 per cent of all chalk streams globally – that’s one in every 10 – sit within Hertfordshire.

At a meeting of the county council’s sustainable economic growth cabinet panel, Cllr Taylor highlighted the global importance of the vital habitats.

“There are less than 200 chalk streams globally and 10 per cent of those are in Hertfordshire,” said Cllr Taylor.

“So, this is a very important natural resource that we absolutely have to look after  – not just for our county, but for the world.”

After referencing the rivers Lea, Beane and the Colne, she said chalk streams were "as rare as endangered tropical rain forests".

While she acknowledged the work of musician Feargal Sharkey in supporting them, she said that more generally they were not highlighted enough.

During the discussion she pointed to pressures faced by the chalk streams, including over-abstraction and pollution. And she said the streams were in "critical danger".

“We all have to keep shouting about this because it is so important to our county,” said Cllr Taylor

Cllr Taylor made the remarks as part of a discussion on the county council’s ongoing work to set up a Local Nature Recovery Strategy.

The chalk streams are acknowledged as providing vital habitats for a range of wildlife, which is said to include water voles and watercress.