Appeal to Dredge the Avon is Rejected

[Mari]

APPEAL TO DREDGE AVON IS REJECTED
CALLS to dredge the River Avon in Stratford have been met with another negative response from the Environment Agency.

The Riverside Association, comprising residents of eight properties in Riverside, off Tiddington Road, says that regular dredging is needed to prevent the next major flood. But as the public body charged with flood prevention, the Environment Agency have ruled out such a measure.

Terry Matthews, of the association, says the river hasn’t been dredged for 36 years. “It has been six months since the floods in Stratford and yet no-one seems to have done anything to try and eliminate the problems that cause flooding in the first place,” he said.

The Environment Agency have said previously that a permanent flood defence scheme in Stratford is not viable, while a temporary structure would be “technically difficult.” Asked if dredging was a possibility, a spokeswoman said: “We routinely consider dredging as a method of reducing flood risk and carry out such work where we can demonstrate that it is technically sound, economically viable, environmentally acceptable and sustainable.

“Our experience is that dredging is only effective in the relatively few locations where we can satisfy the tests outlined above.

“At Stratford, there is a wide floodplain. During a flood, there is so much water flowing on the floodplain compared to the volume in the river channel that dredging would not be of any benefit in terms of flood defence.”

For the full story, see the Herald.