Derwent River Restoration Plan June 2010 - extracts re Kirkham weir and sluices

Kirkham Weir and Sluices: Options Appraisal Project

The Environment Agency (EA) is responsible for these structures in the River Derwent and is considering what should be done with them in future. Apparently the sluices no longer work reliably, are not required for flood defence and would be expensive to replace. Following the trial lowering of the river in September 2014, the EA has been assessing the effects that occurred then and is considering all the options. They range from:
•    Do absolutely nothing
•    Minimal maintenance (more or less as at present)
•    Various different types of weirs and sluices at different levels, with fish passes to help fish travel up and down the river more freely
•    Complete removal of the weir or sluice or both.
The EA is also looking into alternative sources of funding for any of these. Some more detail can be found in Kirkham Weir and Sluice Presentation, although note that the photos on slide 10 are from Wales, not Kirkham!

The EA’s consultants, Jacobs, have taken on the task of assessing all of the options ‘long list’ against a wide range of criteria, including ecology, landscape, geomorphology, geotechnical risk, cultural heritage, economics, etc. As part of this Appraisal Project the EA wants to know what local residents think too and will take our views into account. They will incorporate our views into a workshop that all their specialists will be having in a week or two’s time.

If you’d like to find out more about the background to this project, look at these extracts from the

 River Derwent Restoration Plan (link)
or the full document 

http://www.therrc.co.uk/DesignatedRivers/Yorks_Derwent_Restoration_Plan.pdf

If any relevant information is received from the EA, it will also be posted on this website.

Or please contact Rona Charles at Ambo Cottage (High Hutton), 696070,

c/o parishclerk@huttonsambo.com.

If you have any views that you’d like the EA to consider,

please let Rona know, ideally by Saturday 20 February.

Rona Charles

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