 As with many urban rivers, the Frome has suffered from pollution, but several stretches run through parks and reserves that sustain a range of wildlife. The power of the water was harnessed in many watermills and the area around the river mouth was developed as shipyards by the eighteenth century. As the city of Bristol developed in the nineteenth and twentieth century, flooding became a major problem, remedied by the construction of storm drains and diversions.
