Case study:Sculthorpe Moor Restoration Scheme

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Location: 52° 49' 58.62" N, 0° 48' 52.32" E

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Project overview

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Status	Complete
Project web site
Themes	Fisheries, Flood risk management, Habitat and biodiversity, Hydromorphology
Country	England
Main contact forename	Adam
Main contact surname	Thurtle
Main contact user ID
Contact organisation	Environment Agency
Contact organisation web site	http://www.environment-agency.gov.uk
Partner organisations
Parent multi-site project	Case_study:Wensum River Restoration Strategy
This is a parent project encompassing the following projects	No

Restored section of Wensum at Sculthorpe Moor

Project summary

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A sustainable solution was used to improve a silted gravel bed by narrowing the channel using berms, woody debris and pinned willow. This will help to constrict the over-wide channel, increasing water velocity and helping to keep the gravel bed exposed which should provide ideal spawning habitat for trout and an assortment of invertebrates and aquatic plants that depend on a clean gravel substrate.

Large spoil embankments, a remnant of past dredging activities, occur along much of the reach. These have been selectively removed on the southern bank, to improve floodplain connectivity. The result, floodplain wetting during periods of high flow, provides multiple benefits. Floodplain biodiversity is improved, sediment is removed from the channel and flood risk to people and property in Fakenham and further downstream is reduced.

Monitoring surveys and results

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Lessons learnt

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Learning from previous experiences of restoring other sites led the project team away from a prescriptive design solution. Instead they relied on the skills and expertise of the North Norfolk Operations Field Team, to determine the finer detail based on how the river reacts to restoration features as they were constructed. The team were able to incorporate locally available materials such as timber from selective tree management, and re-use spoil banks from historical dredging of the channel.

This flexible approach used fewer resources and saves money by reducing the amount of material needing to be imported. It was a big advantage in Sculthorpe, where ground conditions for machine access were challenging.

Image gallery

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Catchment and subcatchment Select a catchment/subcatchment Edit the catchment and subcatchment details (affects all case studies in this subcatchment) Catchment River basin district Anglian River basin Broadland Rivers Subcatchment River name Wensum US Norwich Area category 100 - 1000 km² Area (km2) Maximum altitude category Less than 100 m Maximum altitude (m) 9898 m <br />0.098 km <br />9,800 cm <br /> Dominant geology Calcareous Ecoregion Great Britain Dominant land cover Arable and Horticulture Waterbody ID GB105034055881 Other case studies in this subcatchment: Great Ryburgh End Restoration Scheme, Meander reinstatement on the River Wensum at the Ryburgh Loop, River Wensum Restoration, Reach 10 Lenwade, River Wensum Restoration, Reach 3a Costessey, River Wensum Restoration, Reach 9 Attlebridge, River rehabilitation on the River Wensum at Swanton Morley, Wensum River Restoration and Floodplain Enhancement, Wensum River Restoration and Floodplain Enhancement, Pensthorpe Site Edit site Name Sculthope Moor WFD water body codes GB105034055881 WFD (national) typology WFD water body name Wensum US Norwich Pre-project morphology Over-widened Reference morphology Desired post project morphology Low gradient passively meandering Heavily modified water body Yes National/international site designation UK - Site of Special Scientific Interest Local/regional site designations Protected species present No Invasive species present No Species of interest Dominant hydrology Dominant substrate River corridor land use 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) Project started Works started 2013/11/04 Works completed 2013/11/29 Project completed Total cost category Total cost (k€) Benefit to cost ratio Funding sources Cost for project phases Phase cost category cost exact (k€) Lead organisation Contact forename Contact surname Investigation and design Environment Agency Stakeholder engagement and communication Environment Agency Works and works supervision North Norfolk Operations Field Team Post-project management and maintenance Monitoring Reasons for river restoration Edit reasons for restoration Mitigation of a pressure Hydromorphology Substrate conditions, Width & depth variation, Quantity & dynamics of flow Biology Fish Physico-chemical Other reasons for the project Measures Edit Measures Structural measures Bank/bed modifications Creation of berms, Introducing large woody debris Floodplain / River corridor Floodplain reconnection, Removal of embankments Planform / Channel pattern Channel narrowing Other Non-structural measures Management interventions Social measures (incl. engagement) Other 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 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 Additional documents and videos Upload additional documents River Wensum Restoration Strategy Newsletter - Februrary 2014 Additional links and references Edit links and references Link Description Supplementary Information Edit Supplementary Information