Wanton destruction

Thu 11 Nov 2021, 18:41 (last edited on Fri 12 Nov 2021, 09:19)

The report on the 2007 floods in Charlbury did identify problems and actions to be taken to alleviate flooding that had been caused downstream of the town. This included dealing with pinch points and obstructions cause by vegetation.

Section 3 deals with this :-

"Flooding attributed to high flows in the River Evenlode caused flooding of land and property downstream of Charlbury Town."

Among the things recommended was the following (recommendation A in area 3) :-

"Riparian owners to actively manage vegetation in the channel and on the banks and adjacent land of the River Evenlode and other tributaries and ditches in the Parish. This would remove restrictions to flow, improve the capacity of the channel to convey flood water and allow flood water to pass onto the floodplain without backing up."

What appears to me to be happening downstream of Fawler Mill, which included a JCB dredging some of the channel, is consistent with this as general maintenance of the river and its banks. The railway track bed is fairly low in this area, and if the river floods it might be possible the track bed or embankments could be washed out. That is what happened in 2007 which put the line out of action for a couple of weeks.



Vegetation will grow back quickly enough without management. It certainly does in what I hesitate to call my garden.

Presumably there are dedicated flood plain areas downstream, perhaps closer to the Thames, where any flood water is meant to spread out rather than being trapped by obstructions in the river course of the Evenlode Valley and damaging the railway track bed and embankments.