Some of England's most famous lakes are facing serious threats from climate change and pollution and need urgent action to protect and restore them for future generations, the Environment Agency warned today.

Experts from around the world have gathered at a hotel on the shores of Windermere in the Lake District to discuss ways of helping that lake and others which face environmental problems.

Agency chairman Lord Chris Smith said the organisation was undertaking an assessment of around 730 of the most important lakes in England and Wales which will need to meet high standards under the EU's Water Framework Directive.

This will impose exacting requirements on lakes and rivers, to be met, in some cases, by 2015.

Lord Smith will stress today the important role lakes play in the natural environment - and the difficulties they face.

An Agency spokesman said that despite being picturesque, Windermere faces water quality issues which are having a serious impact on life below the water's surface.

These include:

• Impacts of pollution from farming and sewage - pesticides and fertilisers from farming are contributing to regular blue-green algal blooms which prevent people from going into the water.
• The threat from the invasion of introduced species - New Zealand Pigmyweed imported in 1911 has escaped from garden ponds into lakes such as Windermere and is out-competing many native species. The invasive weed smothers other plants and tackling it requires chemical control.
• Impact of climate change - the more intense storms which are expected to occur create the potential for flooding, while soil and pollution can be washed off land into lakes, and there is potential for landslides.

Meanwhile, the vendace, a rare fish species that has survived in the Lake District since the Ice Age, almost disappeared recently in Bassenthwaite Lake. The fish have been rescued and transferred to Scottish lochs to ensure their survival.

The Agency's director of environment and business, Tricia Henton, said: "While water quality in our rivers has improved dramatically over the past 20 years, lakes have faced different, more complex environmental challenges.

"They are an important part of our environment and every bit as important as our rivers. They are invaluable to tourism. That's why the Environment Agency and its partners are setting out a blueprint to bring life back to our lakes, creating a better environment for people and wildlife."

Measures that have been taken so far include:

• Activity to reduce pollution in both Windermere and Lake Bassenthwaite by more effective management of fertiliser use.
• The Love Your Lakes Campaign targets the tourism industry and provides information on how to manage waste water and reduce the use of detergents, which can have a detrimental effect.
• Initiatives to bring the business community and users of the land on board to help protect lakes.
• The Heritage Lottery Fund has a Landscape Partnership Scheme which supports projects designed to protect and restore the landscape, including lakes and the area around them.