The Dee Estuary (Welsh: Aber Dyfrdwy) is a large estuary where the River Dee flows into Liverpool Bay. The estuary starts near Shotton after a five miles (8 km) 'canalised' section and the river soon swells to be several miles wide forming the boundary between the Wirral Peninsula in north-west England and Flintshire in north-east Wales. Welsh redirects here, and this article describes the Welsh language. ... For other meanings, see Estuary (disambiguation) Río de la Plata estuary An estuary is a semi-enclosed coastal body of water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. ... For other Rivers Dee in the UK, see River Dee. ... Liverpool Bay is a bay between north-east Wales, Cheshire, Lancashire and Merseyside to the east of the Irish Sea. ... Shotton is a town in Flintshire, north Wales, lying on the River Dee. ... The Wirral is a peninsula in North West England bounded by the River Dee to the west and the River Mersey to the east. ... For other uses, see England (disambiguation). ... Flintshire (Welsh: ) is a principal area and county in north-east Wales. ... This article is about the country. ...

Conservation

The estuary is a major wildlife area and is one of the most important estuaries in Britain and amongst the most important in Europe for its populations of waders and wildfowl. It is protected or listed by numerous agencies:

• Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI)
• Special Protection Area (SPA)
• Sensitive Marine Area (SMA)
• Natura 2000 site
• Ramsar site

A Site of Special Scientific Interest or SSSI is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. ... A Special Protection Area or SPA is a designation under the European Commission Directive on the Conservation of Wild Birds (79/409/EEC). ... NATURA 2000 is a project by the European Union and each of its member states to protect the environment. ... The Ramsar Convention is an international treaty for the conservation and sustainable utilization of wetlands, i. ...

Fishery

The estuary supports some important natural fisheries, including Salmon and Trout on their way to and from the freshwater river, as well as sea-fisheries and shell-fisheries, especially Cockles. For other uses, see Salmon (disambiguation). ... Trinomial name Salmo trutta fario Salmo trutta trutta The Brown Trout (Salmo trutta fario) and the Sea Trout (Salmo trutta trutta) are subspecies distinguished chiefly by the fact that the Brown Trout is largely a freshwater fish, while the Sea Trout shows anadromous reproduction, spawning in fresh water but migrating... The word cockle may refer to: Cockle (bivalve), the common name for bivalve mollusks. ...

Industry

The Dee Estuary was industrialised from quite early on the industrial revolution and some industry remains today. Notable amongst these are the gas fired power station at Connah's Quay, three separate paper mills and a chemical manufacturing plant, and numerous smaller manufacturing industries. The estuary also receives the treated sewage effluent from Queensferry works and from Chester sewage treatment works. At the mouth of the estuary is the natural gas sweetening plant at Point of Ayr on the site of the former colliery. There arer also commercial docks at Mostyn although their use is limited by the tide. A Watt steam engine, the steam engine that propelled the Industrial Revolution in Britain and the world. ... For other uses, see Power station (disambiguation). ... Connahs Quay (Welsh: Cei Connah) is the largest town in Flintshire, north Wales, lying on the River Dee. ... International Paper Companys Kraft paper mill in Georgetown, South Carolina. ... Queensferry is a town in Flintshire, north Wales, lying on the River Dee near the border with England. ... Sewage treatment, or domestic wastewater treatment, is the process of removing contaminants from wastewater, both runoff and domestic. ... For other uses, see Natural gas (disambiguation). ... Point of Ayr is the northernmost point of mainland Wales. ... Wyoming coal mine Coal mining is the mining of coal. ... Mostyn is a small town in Flintshire, north Wales, lying on the estuary of the River Dee. ...

Signs of past industry are visible along the whole length of the estuary especially on the Welsh side. Large stretches of what now appear as flood embankments are long abandoned industrial waste heaps, some still containing highly reactive and caustic materials. This article is about the country. ...

The Dee estuary also supported industries concerned with the synthesis of PCBs and some pharmeceuticals and was also home to several industrial waste oil reclamation industries. PCB may refer to: Brazilian Communist Party (in Portuguese, Partido Comunista Brasileiro) Communist Party of Bolivia (in Spanish, Partido Comunista de Bolivia) Pakistan Cricket Board PCB Piezotronics PCBoard, a bulletin board system software Police Complaints Board, which oversaw the system for handling complaints made against police forces in England and...

As a consequence of its industrial heritage, there are extensive areas of contaminated ground along the shores of the estuary.

The estuary also plays a part in the most modern of industries as it provides the first stage of transport of Airbus A380 wings on their way to Toulouse via barge to Mostyn docks. The Airbus A380 is a double-deck, wide-body, four-engine airliner manufactured by the European corporation Airbus, an EADS subsidiary. ... New city flag (Occitan cross) Traditional coat of arms Motto: (Occitan: For Toulouse, always more) Location Coordinates Time Zone CET (GMT +1) Administration Country Region Midi-Pyrénées Department Haute-Garonne (31) Intercommunality Community of Agglomeration of Greater Toulouse Mayor Jean-Luc Moudenc  (UMP) (since 2004) City Statistics Land... Mostyn is a small town in Flintshire, north Wales, lying on the estuary of the River Dee. ...

See also

• River Dee

For other Rivers Dee in the UK, see River Dee. ...

External links

• Wirral Council: Dee Estuary SSSI
• Dee Estuary bird life
• Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC)