Case study:The River Deerness Project

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Location: 54° 46' 35.52" N, 1° 36' 37.90" W

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Project overview

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Status	Complete
Project web site	http://www.wear-rivers-trust.org.uk/content/deernessrestoration
Themes	Fisheries, Habitat and biodiversity, Hydromorphology, Water quality
Country	England
Main contact forename	Steve
Main contact surname	Hudson
Main contact user ID
Contact organisation	Wear Rivers Trust
Contact organisation web site	http://www.wear-rivers-trust.org.uk/
Partner organisations	Durham County Council, Durham University
This is a parent project encompassing the following projects	Hedleyhope Burn, The River Deerness Project 2

Cornsay Colliery culvert

Project summary

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The Deerness catchment, located west of Durham City, covers 53 km2 and includes the small colliery towns of Ushaw Moor, Esh Winning and Cornsay. Land use is largely agricultural, with woodland cover and several reclaimed open cast and landfill sites. A significant part of the catchment fails the Water Framework Directive for fish, due to the cumulative effects of barriers to the upstream and downstream movement of all fish species and also because of water quality issues (principally phosphate) reflected in altered phytobenthos.

The outcomes of the project are the following: enhanced habitat connectivity throughout both catchments allowing all fish species, migratory and non-migratory, maximum scope to spawn and feed; improved knowledge of fish populations and behaviours through baseline and post-implementation monitoring and evaluation; progress toward/achievement of Good Ecological Status and focus on any residual water quality issues required to achieve good status; establishment of partnership working and joint delivery to be ex-tended under the auspices of the Wear Catchment Management Plan.

Further funding from the Catchment Restoration Fund as well as Durham County Council and Durham University allowed for the provision of a rock pool fish easement at a road culvert on at Cornsay Colliery located on Hedleyhope Burn (a tributary of the River Deerness), completed in September 2012. Hedleyhope Burn is 9.2km in length. The road culvert has been cutting of fish access to 5km of good quality habitat, as under most flow conditions the culvert becomes impassable. This 30m corrugated steel pipe has rapid and shallow uniform flows when water levels are low, and concentrated high velocity flows at high water levels. An extensive erosion pool at the downstream exit to the culvert exhibits the force of water leaving the culvert. A wide concrete step 15 to 20 cm above the surface of the water also obstructs fish passage into the culvert. The solution was to replace the existing scour pool with a series of rock pools to provide a variety of flows for fish, as well as drowning out the concrete step by increasing water levels back into the culvert and creating a slower and deeper flow, improving fish passage. Flood risk was not increased as the site is in a deep depression with no buildings close by. The site is owned by Durham County who also contributed half of the cost. The Wear Rivers Trust helped with the design of the rock pool easement. Due to the location in a high rainfall upland area, 2-3 tonne rocks were used to form a continuous line of bank protection to protect the site a high flow levels. Larger gravels were also used, and willow spiling is due to be installed at a later stage.

Monitoring surveys and results

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The Wear Rivers Trust operates fish and invertebrate surveys to assess fish populations and water health in both catchments. Under CRF a Durham University PhD student, with WRT and volunteer support, will survey below and above each obstruction both before and after restoration activities to measure impacts on those animal groups. Changes in invertebrate communities are not expected as a direct result of the restoration activities but they can inform on the wider food web for fish feeding opportunities, and provide biotic indices of water quality, giving wider insight into local environmental quality. Waste water management is significant across the Lower Wear system, including these two catchments. Supplementary projects, based on a separate volunteer walkover programme, will be developed under the auspices of the Wear River Catchment Management Plan to identify and address point and diffuse sources of pollution, in order to augment CRF actions for improvement to fish movement within these catchments

Lessons learnt

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Image gallery

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Cornsay Colliery culvert

Broadgate Ford

Catchment and subcatchment Select a catchment/subcatchment Edit the catchment and subcatchment details (affects all case studies in this subcatchment) Catchment River basin district Northumbria River basin Wear Subcatchment River name Browney from Smallhope Burn Deerness confl Area category 100 - 1000 km² Area (km2) Maximum altitude category 200 - 500 m Maximum altitude (m) 309309 m <br />0.309 km <br />30,900 cm <br /> Dominant geology Calcareous Ecoregion Great Britain Dominant land cover Improved grassland Waterbody ID GB103024077551 Other case studies in this subcatchment: The River Deerness Project 2 Site Edit site Name Deerness WFD water body codes GB103024077551; GB103024077290 WFD (national) typology WFD water body name Browney from Smallhope Burn Deerness confl; Hedleyhope Burn from Source to Deerness Pre-project morphology Closed culvert Reference morphology Bedrock cascade Desired post project morphology Heavily modified water body No National/international site designation Local/regional site designations Protected species present No Invasive species present No Species of interest Dominant hydrology Dominant substrate River corridor land use Intensive agriculture (arable); improved/semi-improved grassland/pasture Average bankfull channel width category Average bankfull channel width (m) Average bankfull channel depth category Average bankfull channel depth (m) Mean discharge category Mean annual discharge (m3/s) Average channel gradient category Average channel gradient Average unit stream power (W/m2) Project background Edit project background Reach length directly affected (m) 130130 m <br />0.13 km <br />13,000 cm <br /> Project started 2012/07/01 Works started Works completed Project completed 2015/03/31 Total cost category Total cost (k€) Benefit to cost ratio Funding sources Defra Catchment Restoration Fund; Durham County Council; Durham University Cost for project phases Phase cost category cost exact (k€) Lead organisation Contact forename Contact surname Investigation and design Stakeholder engagement and communication Works and works supervision Post-project management and maintenance Monitoring Reasons for river restoration Edit reasons for restoration Mitigation of a pressure Water quality, Barriers to fish migration Hydromorphology Continuity for organisms Biology Phytobenthos, Fish Physico-chemical Phosphate Other reasons for the project Measures Edit Measures Structural measures Bank/bed modifications Floodplain / River corridor Planform / Channel pattern Remove obstacles in the riverbed, Removing barriers to water organisms migration in the river Other Non-structural measures Management interventions Social measures (incl. engagement) Other Establishment of partnership working and joint delivery to be extended under the auspices of the Wear Catchment Management Plan. Monitoring Hydromorphological quality elements Edit Hydromorphological quality elements Element When monitored Type of monitoring Control site used Result Before measures After measures Qualitative Quantitative Biological quality elements Edit biological quality elements Element When monitored Type of monitoring Control site used Result Before measures After measures Qualitative Quantitative [[]] No No No No No Physico-chemical quality elements Edit Physico-chemical quality elements Element When monitored Type of monitoring Control site used Result Before measures After measures Qualitative Quantitative Any other monitoring, e.g. social, economic Edit Other responses Element When monitored Type of monitoring Control site used Result Before measures After measures Qualitative Quantitative Monitoring documents Upload monitoring documents RRC Monitoring table - Deerness Additional documents and videos Upload additional documents CRF Project briefing note - Deerness Additional links and references Edit links and references Link Description Supplementary Information Edit Supplementary Information