Nigel Horan
Nigel Horan was quite late in discovering the many pleasures of fishing. But the thrills of the river bank, remembered from occasional childhood adventures, were rediscovered on retirement when he first encountered the then relatively novel sport of sea kayak fishing. Catching cod, pollack, coley and the occasional bass, drifting off the east coast of Yorkshire, was the perfect way to occupy a day. Unfortunately the ninety mile drive to the coast from the Calder Valley, together with the vagaries of maritime weather, meant that something more local was needed to fill a newly acquired fishing addiction. With the Calder just down the road, this was the start of a river fishing odyssey, learning how to fish this capricious river throughout the seasons and along its many and varied stretches. In turn this led to an awareness of the river’s troubled past and bright future and the problems facing it and other rivers in the UK. His new book - Reclaiming the Calder - will be published in 2024.
Nigel holds a doctorate in Biochemistry from the University of Hull, investigating the microbial production of novel products from cane sugar, in conjunction with Tate & Lyle. This was put to use in a career over 36 years as an academic at the University of Leeds, specialising in the microbial treatment of wastewaters and their impact on the aquatic environment, as well as the digestion of organic wastes for energy production. Nigel received numerous awards for his technical publications and research innovations and in 1998 he formed an environmental consultancy, Aqua Enviro Ltd. which he chaired until its takeover by Suez in 2015. Through this he has worked at many of the major wastewater treatment plants in the UK and overseas. When not fishing or kayaking, he digs enthusiastically in the vegetable plot and tries to tempt wildlife to visit the pond and borders. He still retains links with the water industry and is the Influent Integrator for the Select Society of Sanitary Sludge Shovellers - its fifty members representing the great and good in the world of sewage treatment and sludge disposal.
Nigel Horan was quite late in discovering the many pleasures of fishing. But the thrills of the river bank, remembered from occasional childhood adventures, were rediscovered on retirement when he first encountered the then relatively novel sport of sea kayak fishing. Catching cod, pollack, coley and the occasional bass, drifting off the east coast of Yorkshire, was the perfect way to occupy a day. Unfortunately the ninety mile drive to the coast from the Calder Valley, together with the vagaries of maritime weather, meant that something more local was needed to fill a newly acquired fishing addiction. With the Calder just down the road, this was the start of a river fishing odyssey, learning how to fish this capricious river throughout the seasons and along its many and varied stretches. In turn this led to an awareness of the river’s troubled past and bright future and the problems facing it and other rivers in the UK. His new book - Reclaiming the Calder - will be published in 2024.
Nigel holds a doctorate in Biochemistry from the University of Hull, investigating the microbial production of novel products from cane sugar, in conjunction with Tate & Lyle. This was put to use in a career over 36 years as an academic at the University of Leeds, specialising in the microbial treatment of wastewaters and their impact on the aquatic environment, as well as the digestion of organic wastes for energy production. Nigel received numerous awards for his technical publications and research innovations and in 1998 he formed an environmental consultancy, Aqua Enviro Ltd. which he chaired until its takeover by Suez in 2015. Through this he has worked at many of the major wastewater treatment plants in the UK and overseas. When not fishing or kayaking, he digs enthusiastically in the vegetable plot and tries to tempt wildlife to visit the pond and borders. He still retains links with the water industry and is the Influent Integrator for the Select Society of Sanitary Sludge Shovellers - its fifty members representing the great and good in the world of sewage treatment and sludge disposal.