Littlestock Brook flood alleviation phase 1: Woody dams
Information about Littlestock Brook flood alleviation phase 1
Image gallery
Large Woody Dams
In 2007 a sudden and severer rain storm hit the Wychwoods. This caused a sudden deluge of water to flow down Littlestock Brook that crosses under Church Road. Because of constrictions at the bridge and further downstream there was a backup of water which over-topped the banks of the brook at The Heath. This combined with water following the original course of the brook over the fields altered, we think, by the Bruern Abbey Monks, eventually flooded the properties on The Heath.
The Parish Council gets to work
Subsequently several studies were carried out and models developed of ways to prevent similar occurrences. Unfortunately many of the models were theoretical and flawed. However in 2015 the Parish Council under the guidance of the Environment Agency started work on altering the brook in an attempt to alleviate the flooding risk. The first phase was to widen the brook to reduce the flow as it is the speed of this flow that is continually washing away the brook bed and its sediment.
In 2016 the Parish Council, again under the guidance of the Environment Agency, combined with Wild Oxfordshire embarked on the second phase of the scheme. This second phase was to include many facets of local natural flood management along with a much larger scheme to improve the water management and quality of the whole River Evenlode catchment area in our vicinity.
Once all the permissions and permits were in place, this March a large excavator appeared on the scene and the dams were built. The tree trunks came locally from the Bruern Estate and were installed by Windrush AEC, a company well used to this kind of work. The process took just four days and twelve logs were embedded into the banks, staked to the brook bed with reinforcing rods and cable stayed to nearby trees. The last dam upstream was the hardest being a substantial trunk of oak.
The Finished Dams
In the short time they have been in operation they already have ‘captured’ some fallen trees and branches brought down by the strong winds and prevented them from being washed downstream.
The Finished Dams It has been calculated that the 12 dams will hold back some 1303m of water. Of course we will not know how this will work until tested but in trials elsewhere in the country this type of intervention has proved very successful.
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