The Great Flood

It's always seemed odd to me that flood banks have been built along stretches of the River Ouse that serve only to 'protect' the flood plain from flooding. They actually funnel the flood water to towns and villages further down river. Today I've been to the stretch of river just north of Cawood, between York and Selby, where I conduct my annual tansy beetle survey.

Around the corner the road descends into a vast lake

This whole stretch of river has a high flood bank along it, although the fields on the other side of the bank are called Kelfield Ings. There's a clue in the name - why on earth would you build a bank to stop a traditional flood meadow from flooding? This time, the water has reached the crest of the flood bank and gone over, but most of the water on the other side has flowed into the fields from further down river, below Cawood, where the banks are lower. This has protected the next village of Kelfield. In this instance the flood plain has filled up anyway, as it should, but the flood banks above Cawood serve only to prevent that happening and, under more normal conditions, stop the water entering the flood plain and potentially damaging crops.

The same applies to long stretches of the river north of York, where the ings are used as cattle pasture. Perhaps the interests of wealthy farmers have been put ahead of ordinary people in towns and villages, whose homes are now at risk of flooding.

The flood bank just north of Cawood

In the photo above, the normal course of the river is on the other side of the trees on the right. The area between those trees and the flood bank is a 'waste' ground of willowherb, nettle, and tansy. At this point it widens out to provide a limited storage area for flood water, but one that's totally inadequate in the current circumstances. The tansy beetles which I survey are hibernating underground in this area, currently under four metres of water!

Tansy beetle habitat

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-35187589
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-35192138

Comments

  1. Unknown29 December 2015 at 18:18

    It always struck me as odd how much we protect flood plains and farmers fields while allowing the houses of people to flood. I read an article today (but from Jan) detailing the issues we still have with flooding in this country by George Monbiot that may interest you if you haven't already read it: http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/jan/13/flooding-public-spending-britain-europe-policies-homes

    ReplyDelete
  2. Unknown14 March 2016 at 13:31

    Good blog! I have often wondered the same! Such a simple thing to put right! Hopefully now after more and more flooding in the uk the government will do something about it! Re flood the flood plains!

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Collecting Tansy Seed

Image
Today I’ve been to Fulford Ings, to collect seed from tansy plants to sow next spring. Each plant produces dozens of flower heads and each flower contains hundreds of seeds, so the small amount I’ve collected will have no effect on the natural spread of the plants. I’ll aim to produce another 1000 tansy plants next year. Dead flower heads now contain ripe seed   The seed will be left to dry out in my kitchen   The new generation of tansy beetles that emerged from pupae in the summer have now gone underground for the winter – except for one, which was still wandering around! The last tansy beetle still active I was concerned that the tansy we planted in August was being nibbled by rabbits (see Helping Barn Owls and Tansy Beetles ). Today I saw that new growth has appeared at the base of the plants, which the rabbits haven’t touched, so I think they will be OK in the spring. The wild flower meadow is now being grazed by sheep. They eat tansy plants too, but the plant
Read more

Fen Bog

Image
It’s difficult to pick a favourite nature reserve, as they’re all so different and vary so much with the seasons, but one of my favourites must be Fen Bog, on the North York Moors. It’s in a hidden valley surrounded by moorland, with a boggy mire in the centre. Volunteers pulling bracken I usually only visit once a year, when Yorkshire Wildlife Trust have a conservation volunteer work day there. This year we’ve had two days, cutting back the bracken on the valley sides which threatens to engulf the reserve. The denser patches are cleared with brushcutters while thinner and steeper areas can be pulled by hand, minimizing damage to the surrounding vegetation. It’s one of those reserves where the results of our work can be clearly seen from one year to the next. Areas of dense bracken we brushcut last year just needed a tidy up by hand this year. Small pearl-bordered fritillary Large skipper sipping nectar from a thistle This is a great place to find some interesting in
Read more

Maldives 2016: Wildlife on the Island

Image
The two most common birds on the island of Dhigurah are the Asian koel and the Maldivian house crow. The koel, being a type of cuckoo, is a brood parasite and the crow is its host - the koel lays its eggs in the crow's nest. The koel is a protected species in the Maldives, whereas the house crow is regarded as a pest. Both are noisy birds. The koel is more often heard than seen, as they tend to perch in the densest vegetation and betray their presence only by their extremely loud calls. The house crow is a bolder bird. It will call loudly at passing humans, apparently in defence of its territory. Call of the Asian koel Call of the Maldivian house crow The Oriental garden lizard is often seen around the village. They are large lizards, up to 37cm in length, including a very long tail. They can move each of their eyes in different directions, like chameleons, and change colour to match their surroundings. During the breeding season, the male's head and shoulders turn
Read more