Bringing in beavers is yet more stupidity in floods battle - Yorkshire Post Letters

From: John R Goodman, Grove Close, Beverley.
Beavers are being introduced to rivers near Pickering to help turn the tide when it comes to flooding.Beavers are being introduced to rivers near Pickering to help turn the tide when it comes to flooding.
Beavers are being introduced to rivers near Pickering to help turn the tide when it comes to flooding.

I HAVE read that beavers are to be introduced in the Pickering area with the intention of assessing their flood reduction capability. This is yet another example of stupidity in a number of wasteful and expensive flood prevention measures. The first consideration of any drainage scheme is to maximise the efficiency of the drainage system over its entire length.

Clearly any insecure structures like beaver dams not only impede the flow, but can cause obstructions if swept away in a flood.

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Attenuation reservoirs should be kept empty for as long as possible and only brought into use when the surface flows (flood) exceed the capability of the drainage infrastructure.

The proposals appear to be the work of Natural England, whose remit seems to be to create as many wetland areas as possible under any guise, and irrespective of the land use.

It is a situation that will only get worse now that Michael Gove, the Environment Secretary, has appointed a conservationist as the chief executive of Natural England.

Hundreds of millions of pounds are being wasted in the name of flood prevention, here is yet another example.

I write as a retired drainage officer.