‘Farming, faeces and fleas’ is the subject of the latest meeting being hosted in Wootton Fitzpaine.

The free public meeting will take place on February 24 at 7.30pm in Wootton Fitzpaine Village Hall, organised by The River Char Community Project.

Split into 3 lots of 15-minute talks, the first is titled ‘Delivering for nature on the farm – find out the work being done with farmers in the Char Valley and what more can be achieved.’ This will be delivered by Nick Gray, a Dorset Wildlife Trust and Ian Rees, of Dorset Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB).

Flea collars worn by cats and dogs can harm wildlife living in rivers which will be discussed by retired veterinary surgeon John Kenward, who is hosting a talk on the unseen impact on river life caused by dogs' flea collars and insecticide treatments used on other animals.

The final talk, ‘Unseen impact on the river and the wider environment of poorly managed septic tanks – find out how to look after yours' is set to be hosted by Tom Beels of Burrow Environmental.

The River Char Community Project launched in 2021 and has run practical workdays on the river banks, organized farm and river walks as well as work to remove invasive species like Himalayan Balsam and recording the water quality, regularly informing residents on how they can help maintain the river’s health.

News of other local efforts to help West Dorset's rivers and wildlife will also be discussed at the meeting, including West Dorset Wilding and CROWD - Clean Rivers of West Dorset.

The meeting is open to everyone and refreshments will be served towards the end.