River Parrett Dredging Program Wrapped Up

The latest phase of the River Parrett dredging scheme was successfully wrapped up last week, according to thisisthewestcountry.co.uk.

Contractors have spent the past three months removing 13,000 cubic meters of material from a 750 m stretch of the Parrett between Northmoor Pumping Station and Linden Farm.

Some of the equipment that was used for the works included a 45-tonne excavator with a reach of 22 meters, tug boat for pushing and pulling hopper barges loaded with silt by machines placed on floating pontoons, other excavators and trucks, etc.

This cleanup scheme, funded and commissioned by the Somerset Rivers Authority (SRA), was carried out by the Environment Agency and its contractors Land & Water and Black and Veitch.

“We’re delighted that another important piece of work to reduce flood risk in the county has been completed,” said John Osman, Chair of the Somerset Rivers Authority.

“The work of the SRA is tackling the flood issue in lots of different ways, from land management to improving drainage, and dredging is an important part of the picture.”

This project follows earlier phase one dredging work, completed in October 2014, when the Environment Agency removed 130,000 cubic meters of material from an 8 km stretch of the Rivers Tone and Parrett around Burrowbridge.

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