We recently undertook a project for National Trust at Lyme Park in Cheshire to improve water quality, reduce flooding and increase biodiversity across the estate.
Lyme Park is a 1,400 acre estate nestled on the edge of the Peak District, with landscaped gardens, moors and meadows. It is made up of several unique habitats and home to a wide range of wildlife including red deer. Our work focused on an area of ancient woodland where there was a need to improve the quality of the water leaving the estate as well as to create a wet woodland habitat mosaic.
The team created a series of twelve leaky dams with accompanying ponds and scrapes. Leaky dams were built into the current watercourses to hold back excess rainwater and release it more gradually into the streams to prevent them from being overwhelmed. Ponds and scrapes were added to store excess water in times of heavy rainfall until the natural water system is able to cope with it.
This form of flood management is 100% natural, more effective and less intrusive than modern methods of flood mitigation and supports the wildlife of Lyme Park too. By improving biodiversity in the woodland and creating a riparian habitat, numerous species of amphibians, insects and birds will thrive.
“The Wildscapes team were employed by Lyme to design and install a series of leaky dams with associated scrapes and pools. I found them to be enthusiastic, skilled and professional and I was very happy with their work on this project. I enjoyed working with them and I am pleased that they seemed to get so much out of the job.”
Jack Crowshaw, Area Ranger (Riverlands), National Trust Lyme, 15/11/21
Our experienced team are well placed to advise on and implement a number of natural flood management techniques from leaky dams to tree planting. Find out more here; https://wildscapes.co.uk/land-management or contact us on 0114 303 5123 to discuss your needs.
Discover Lyme Park here; https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/lyme