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Case Study: Four Copses Wiltshire

Project : River Restoration
Project Location: Great Wishford, Wiltshire
River System: River Wylye
Client: Wilton fishing club
Date of Installation: 1998

 
 

Project details:
 

   
Section showing a typical channel profile following the first series of flood events. 5 years later - Downstream view of restoration site to Paskins corner
 

 

Project Brief

 
  • Restore a heavily engineered channel to favourable condition.

  • The main drive was the need to: i) improve wild trout populations for the resdent fly fishing club and ii) improve bankside access for anglers.

  • The scheme enabled a variety of additional habitat initiatives to be bolted onto the clubs primary objectives

              

Solution


Working in partnership with water wardens Ronnie Butler and Jeremy Waters, the uniformly engineered reach was re-sectioned using locally-sourced logs, brushwood and on-site spoil.

'Judicious' narrowing stimulated natural adjustments to the river bed, resulting in a bio-diverse, multi-staged channel following a series of winter flood events.

The re-distribution of sediment and gravels  has promoted successful trout spawning and created a variety of localised niches for key species of flora and fauna.
 


"English Nature has worked with Cain Bio-Engineering on a number of projects over the last six years. In these projects we have noted the attention paid to the river's ecology,.....and the consistently high quality of design and workmanship."

D.J English Nature (now Natural England) Devises

Awards



The 1998 'Famous Grouse' award for wild trout conservation