Category: Environment Agency

Weardale residents are reaping the benefits of a project which has kick-started a £2.1million natural flood management (NFM) project.

A programme of peatland restoration over last winter on a Weardale hillside will help reduce flooding further down the dale, as well as encouraging carbon capture and improving the land for nature.

And a film of the work has launched a new series of Environment Agency Youtube videos which will capture the pioneering Weardale project throughout.

There is also an introductory video about the whole project and what it aims to achieve.

Introduction to Weardale Natural Flood Management project

Extensive areas restored

The North Pennines AONB Partnership worked with East Allenheads Estate to restore extensive areas of bare peat on Wolfcleugh Common, above Rookhope.

It’s the first step for the Weardale Natural Flood Management pilot project which will see the Environment Agency and its partners investigate the potential for a much bigger initiative.

The ambition is to deliver natural features across 100km2 area to reduce the risk of flooding to 141 properties and create a haven for wildlife to thrive.

The project team is currently carrying out an assessment of NFM techniques that might help reduce flood risk in Weardale and takes in towns and villages including Stanhope, Westgate, Eastgate and Wolsingham.

The Environment Agency is working on the project with Natural England, Forestry Commission, Durham County Council, the North Pennines AONB Partnership and the Wear Catchment Partnership, established under Defra’s Catchment Based Approach.

The project team, supported by Wear Rivers Trust, is now working with local farmers and landowners to discuss voluntary involvement in the scheme for future features to be delivered on site at the end of this year.

The peatland restoration work at Rookhope includes installing coir rolls and stone dams to slow down the flow of surface water over bare peat. Steep sided erosion gullies have been reshaped to encourage revegetation, and heather and mosses have been harvested and spread over the bare peat. This helps protect it from further damage from wind, rain, frost and ice and also creates an ideal environment for seeds to germinate.

A series of videos of the Weardale work will be uploaded to Youtube so the community can understand the project and stay updated with progress.

Peatland restoration

Fantastic to see work completed

Alistair Lockett, Field Officer at the North Pennines AONB Partnership, said:

We have been working with Natural England and East Allenheads Estate for the past three years and it is fantastic to see the work completed. It will make a big difference to the valley, by improving carbon storage and mitigating flooding downstream. We’re also pleased that we have been able to support local contractors within the North Pennines.

Kirsty Hardy, the Environment Agency’s Project Manager for Weardale NFM scheme, added:

The AONB Partnership’s peatland restoration work kick starts what is a pioneering project to explore and deliver natural flood management features to reduce flood risk in Weardale, as well as enrich the landscape and habitat of what is a beautiful area of countryside.

Together with our partners we hosted a series of events in the Spring for the community to come along and find out more about the project. We’re now speaking with local farmers and landowners to identify any suitable locations for potential delivery of natural flood management features early next year.

This is a really exciting opportunity to increase our understanding of the impact natural flood management can have on reducing the risk of flooding. A series of videos about the project from start to finish will help people understand the process and stay up to date with progress.

In March 2017 the Environment Agency announced £15million of funding had been made available for NFM schemes nationally. Initial work to engage with farmers and communities and model the flood risk benefits that can be achieved will be complete by the end of the year. If this is successful then the project will deliver a programme of work from early 2019 for a two-year period.

In the case brought by the Environment Agency, Stephen Wayne Morgan (aged 52) had pleaded guilty to one offence of operating a waste storage and treatment facility without an environmental permit, at an earlier hearing. He was sentenced to a 2 year community order with a requirement to complete 250 hours of unpaid work, and ordered to pay £17,000 in prosecution costs, along with a £60 victim surcharge. Morgan must also pay £54,415.33 under a confiscation order depriving him of the criminal benefit from the illegal operation.

The case relates to an offence between 6 April 2015 and 29 August 2015 committed on Middlemore Lane, Aldridge, Walsall, where Morgan had operated under the trading name Aldridge Aggregates & Recycling. Over the period of offending, Morgan allowed the deposit of waste on site, that was later shredded and crushed, before being sold as processed products. The site contained thousands of tonnes of waste including construction and demolition waste, wood waste, and waste soils.

The activities at the site posed a nuisance local residents and a local business. On one occasion (15 June 2015), waste on the site was deliberately burned, subjecting employees of a nearby business to excessive amounts of smoke and forcing them to shut the doors and windows of their business premises.

Complaints were made by local residents, who were subjected to problems of excessive dust blowing towards their homes and settling, and excessive noise from machinery crushing and shredding waste on the site. One resident described the noise as “incredibly loud” and said it could be heard every day from Monday to Friday over a period of months.

Mr Morgan was provided with advice and guidance from the Environment Agency but failed to obtain planning permission or an environmental permit to legitimise the operation. He continued to receive and process waste on the site despite being advised that the activities were illegal, that the activities were having an effect on the local community, and that enforcement action could follow. Waste operations continued even after the Environment Agency served a legal notice on Mr Morgan on 1 July 2015 requiring removal of the waste.

Morgan was ultimately evicted from the premises by the site landlords on 29 August 2015. Thousands of tonnes of waste had to be removed from the site in the ensuing clean-up.

In mitigation, Mr Morgan’s barrister stated that he had no relevant previous convictions and had pleaded guilty at the earliest opportunity. He stated that Mr Morgan had expressed remorse for his offending and had made some attempt to reduce the quantities of waste from the site. He further stated that Mr Morgan was suffering with a number of health conditions.

Speaking after the case, an Environment Agency officer in charge of the investigation said:

The operation of illegal waste sites undermine legitimate businesses along with the investment and economic growth that go with it.

This case demonstrates that we will act upon information given to us regarding suspected illegal or nuisance waste activity and will not hesitate to prosecute when circumstances warrant it.

If you see pollution or a waste crime incident, report it on our incident hotline on 0800 807060.

John Bruce (aged 46) is already serving 26 months imprisonment for dumping, burying and burning hazardous waste at Ridgeway Park Farm, Throckmorton Airfield, Worcestershire.

On Tuesday 4 September, Bruce pleaded guilty to a charge in relation to operating a regulated facility at Ridgeway Park Farm without an Environmental Permit. Worcester Crown Court handed Bruce a 22 week custodial sentence to run concurrently to his existing 26 month sentence.

The case, brought by the Environment Agency, concerned illegal waste operations at Ridgeway Park Farm in 2016. Bruce had accepted over 60 tonnes of redundant kitchen and bathroom materials onto his site. When Environment Agency officers visited the farm, they saw that in addition to these materials, flat pack furniture and packaging materials were being burnt on site.

In mitigation, the Judge noted that Bruce had pleaded guilty and therefore avoided the need for a full trial.

An Environment Agency officer in charge of the investigation said:

Mr Bruce has shown a blatant disregard for the environment and local community by operating a large scale illegal waste site at his farm. His actions undermine legitimate business also the investment and economic growth that go with it.

The Environment Agency will use all its enforcement powers, where we believe environmental offences have been committed. In cases where we believe monies have been unlawfully gained, we will investigate under the proceeds of crime act and confiscate assets.

The Environment Agency urge people to report waste crime on our Incident Hotline 0800 80 70 60 or anonymously to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Businesses in the Stourton area of Leeds are benefitting from increased flood protection following the completion of a new 730 metre flood defence wall and property level protection, such as flood gates and demountable barriers.

The project, led by Leeds City Council in partnership with the Environment Agency, has reduced the risk of flooding to 88 businesses in Stourton and is one of the first areas of work for the second phase of the Leeds Flood Alleviation Scheme.

The £1.4m project, funded by Leeds City Council and the European Regional Development Fund, is part of a package of measures of advanced works designed to mobilise defence construction quickly and efficiently to best protect the city, before the main works of the scheme are approved.

As well as the new flood defence wall along the boundary of the Haigh Park Road Industrial estate with the Aire and Calder Canal, property level protection has been installed at four businesses and one Northern Power Grid sit. This has involved supplying 17 aluminium demountable barriers that can be installed by the businesses across door openings in the event of a flood, where surface water flooding could occur due to the water being prevented from discharging into the canal or river as normal.

The works will provide a 1 in 200 year standard of protection to 88 existing businesses in the Stourton Industrial Estate, safeguard over 4,000 existing jobs in the area and help to protect access to the M1.

Leader of Leeds City Council Councillor Judith Blake said:

“It is very pleasing to see these works at Stourton as part of the initial element of phase two of the Leeds Flood Alleviation Scheme completed.

“Similar measures introduced at Woodlesford for phase one proved effective during the Christmas floods of 2015, so these defences will help protect local businesses, safeguard jobs, and vitally offer reassurance and confidence that these improvements do work at a local level.

“These measures provide further protection for our city centre and for the South Bank area, with formal engineering elements supported by the impressive flexible barriers which can be deployed quickly whenever there is a flood threat. We are firmly committed to seeing all our communities and businesses along the River Aire catchment protected through measures like this, and will continue to make the case for the phase two plans.”

On 26 December 2015, Leeds experienced significant and widespread flooding with some of the highest river levels ever recorded following Storm Eva. The flooding affected nearly 3,000 residential properties and nearly 700 commercial properties. 40 businesses in Stourton, between Thwaite Mills and the M1, were significantly affected by the floods.

Adrian Gill, area flood risk manager from the Environment Agency, said:

“The completion of these works is great news for the businesses that flooded in Stourton and for the people and communities who depend on them for the services and jobs they provide.

“Following the successful completion of Phase 1 of the Leeds Flood Alleviation scheme in October 2017, the Environment Agency is continuing to work closely with Leeds City Council to develop and deliver Phase 2 of the scheme, which will help to ensure that Leeds continues to be a great place to live, work and do business.”

Towngate Plc is an industrial property agent that manages around a dozen commercial properties in the Stourton Industrial Estate. All of its tenants were impacted in the December floods.

Tom Lamb, property manager at Towngate Plc said:

“We were delighted when we were informed of the flood defence plans in Stourton. We understand that projects like this take a while to get off the ground and we were surprised at how quickly it took Leeds City Council and the Environment Agency to make the announcement.

“Since we have been able to tell our tenants about the plans, confidence in the area has boosted as many of our tenants’ concerns will now be addressed. We hope this increased confidence will also continue to benefit businesses looking to move here, bringing with them more employment opportunities to the area.”

The Leeds Flood Alleviation Scheme is led by Leeds City Council in partnership with the Environment Agency and is split into two phases.

A big contribution to the flooding at Stourton was the breach of the river and canal at Knostrop. Stourton is located downstream of Phase 1 of the new Leeds Flood Alleviation Scheme and at the time of Storm Eva, Phase 1 of the project was under construction, so it didn’t provide any flood risk benefit to Stourton.

In October last year, the £50 million Phase 1 of the Leeds Flood Alleviation scheme was officially opened which now provides a 1 in 100 year standard of protection. During construction, there was a repair to Knostrop by-wash with strengthening works including sheet piles. Work also involved the construction of moveable weirs at Crown Point and Knostrop and the removal of a manmade island which separated the canal and river, known locally as Knostrop Cut. The weirs can be lowered when high river flows are expected, to help lower the river level. This work will help protect from another breach happening as it did on Boxing Day, and provide additional protection to Stourton.

The completion of work at Stourton comes as an outline business case for phase 2 of the scheme has been submitted to government, which outlines plans to reduce flood risk to the city upstream of the city centre, taking a catchment wide approach. Phase two identifies measures further upstream including the Kirkstall corridor which was badly hit by the 2015 Christmas floods. It also looks at areas beyond the city boundary to further reduce the possibility of the river flooding in Leeds, as well as additional measures to offer protection for the South Bank area of the city centre which is a key future economic driver for Leeds.

The phase two plans also have a strong focus on Natural Flood Management (NFM), with proposals to create new woodland areas which would more than double canopy coverage in the River Aire catchment. It also proposes water storage areas to be created and developed, operated by control gates system meaning water can be held and then released back into the river when safe to do so. A third element would be the removal of existing obstructions along the river to help reduce water levels, along with lowering the riverbed in places to improve its capacity and flow.

Aside from these measures, phase two would also see some new infrastructure measures installed including landscaping, terracing, embankments and walls, but due to the range of natural measures the height of any engineered defences would not need to be as high as originally projected, typically averaging 1.2 to 1.5 metres in height.

If approved by the government, proposals for the main works of Phase 2, created by Leeds City Council working with the Environment Agency and BMM jV Limited, would see work scheduled to begin in summer 2019.

The National Drought Group (NDG), chaired by the Environment Agency’s Chief Executive, brings together government departments, water companies, environmental groups and others to coordinate action to maintain water supplies and manage the other risks associated with drought. The NDG convened on Wednesday 29 August to assess the present situation and coordinate plans for the weeks ahead.

The present situation and the prospects

Rainfall across England over three months from May to July was 54% of the long-term average (LTA). Farmers, the environment and water companies faced considerable pressures caused by the rapid deterioration in water resources.

At the end of July, a band of wet weather brought some respite as it moved across parts of the country. United Utilities called off a proposed hosepipe ban in early August but continued with applications for 4 drought permits, should they be needed later in the year. These have been approved by the Environment Agency.
August has been unsettled with dry periods interrupted by wet weather. This has helped the situation.

The Met Office’s 3 month outlook for September to November forecasts that above average temperatures and slightly lower than average rainfall are likely.

As we move into autumn the Environment Agency, the water companies and the other members of the NDG will continue to work closely together to reduce the risk of water restrictions and balance the needs of the public, businesses and the environment.

Action we are taking

Water Companies

Water companies have taken and will continue to take a range of actions to maintain water supplies for customers, including:

• Operational interventions such as installing new pumping stations, reconfiguring networks to reduce reliance on specific water treatment works, and accelerating work to bring sites back into operation.
• Tackling leakage by providing extra funding and resource to fix leaks, alongside use of technology such as satellite imaging and drones to find leaks.
• Implementing contingency drought plans as appropriate.
• Promoting water efficiency messages to customers through increased media activity, roadshows and community engagement.

Environment Agency

The Environment Agency has:

• Responded to a 330% increase in dry-weather related incidents compared with this time last year.
• Introduced flexible abstraction for farmers in emergency cases in order to safeguard food production and animal welfare, where it is satisfied there will be no adverse effects on the environment.
• Allowed farmers to trade water allowances – as set out in their abstraction licence – on a short-term basis, without the need to change their licences.
• Granted United Utilities 4 drought permits at locations in Cumbria, to enable them to be deployed quickly should they be needed.
• Used our powers to protect the environment by applying for a drought order. This is the first time we have used these powers due to the extraordinary dry weather this summer.

Other partners

Defra, the National Farmers’ Union, Canal & River Trust, the Angling Trust and other NDG members are working actively to manage down the risks and support the needs of water users and the environment.

Advice to the public

Although we have received some rainfall during August, the overall outlook for the next 3 months remains drier than average. We encourage everyone to follow the advice of their water company and use water wisely. This will help protect the environment and the economy, and reduce the risk of further water restrictions.

Next NDG meeting

The next meeting is scheduled for 20 September where we will focus on preparing for next summer as the drought may continue through the winter.