Last year, with the help of the Cotswold Rivers Trust, we created a natural flood management feature at Honeydale Farm to hold up water flow at peak times and reduce the input into the River Evenlode, as well as creating a more diverse wetland habitat. Since the project at Honeydale provides a small scale, working example of how this type of flood management can be implemented on wider catchments in the UK, we were delighted to welcome representatives from various water and river authorities, councils, and bodies including the Environment Agency, as well local people and flood action groups, to discuss what we had done and it’s wider implications.
The day's events, which began at the Beaconsfield Hall in Shipton Under-Wychwood, were introduced by Trevor Cramphorn, Chairman of Cotswold Rivers Trust, before Ian Wilkinson and Sam Lane talked about the water management works that have been undertaken at Honeydale Farm. This was followed by presentations from waterways management specialist Vaughan Lewis, Dave Gasca, Hydrologist from the Evenlode Catchment Partnership and, Alistair Yeomans, Chartered Forester from the Sylva Foundation who spoke on the topic of Woodlands for Water. The day ended, after lunch and a Q&A session, with a site visit and tour of the works at Honeydale Farm.
