RIVERS including the Test and the Itchen could be damaged forever unless urgent action is taken.

The first ever report on the state of England's 161 chalk rivers has been launched in Winchester.

Chalk rivers, of which Hampshire's River Test and Itchen are two of the most famous and pristine, form a valuable and irreplaceable part of our national heritage.

They face mounting man-made threats which groups including the environment Agency and English Nature say must be tackled.

Sir John Harman, chairman of the Environment Agency, told the Daily Echo: "The Test and the Itchen are as much part of our national heritage as Winchester Cathedral or the Houses of Parliament.

"The Itchen is in very good condition but some areas further downstream are affected by emissions.

"The Test is a long river and the problems increase the further down to the sea you get.

"The report is not a clean bill of health but not a verdict of death either. It's saying here are the issues and we want people to understand what they are so they can be tackled."

The rivers support a diverse range of rare and endangered species and provide water for drinking, industry and agriculture.

Rivers such as the Test and Itchen are fragile ecosystems facing growing threats including urban and infrastructure developments, agriculture, effluent discharges, land drainage and flood defences.

Speaking at the launch at Winchester Cathedral Refectory, Sir John Harman, said: "Chalk rivers, apart from being this habitat of huge national and international importance, are a barometer of our natural environment, of how usefully we are using or abusing natural resources."

The UK Biodiversity Action Plan Steering Group for Chalk Rivers produced the new report to set out how the rivers can be preserved.

Half of the sites surveyed for the report are of high or very high quality, nearly one-third are poor or very poor. The report found that, while water-crowfoot communities and otters are recovering from past declines, stock of salmon remains seriously low and there is decreasing fly life.

Species such as the water vole and white clawed crayfish are also under threat.

To make the vision a reality the experts say they need to maintain and enhance the habitats of chalk rivers and their inhabitants, restore water quality, flows and habitat diversity and identify cost-effective means of restoring damaged river reaches.