TBT has been blamed as the main culprit for the destruction of the Norfolk Broads ecosystem even though it was banned in 1987.

Aquatic vegetation from most of the 50 lakes in the Norfolk Broads has been lost because of the anti-fouling paint, scientists from the UCL Environmental Change Research Centre reveal.

Ironically the infestation of barnacles on yacht hulls – which the paint was designed to prevent – does not happen in fresh water.