The Environment Agency has de-silted a section of the Tetney Haven, helping reduce flood risk and boosting the area’s ecology.
The work, part of the EA’s regular maintenance program, saw excess silt removed from approximately a kilometer of the Louth Canal and from around the sluice gates at Tetney Lock, the Agency stated.
Silt builds up naturally at the sluice as it settles when the flowing water in the channel loses momentum at the sluice gates. Removing it means water can continue to flow easily from the canal into the Haven.
Along with other routine maintenance on the channel, removing the silt helped reduce flood risk to approximately 500 local homes and businesses.
The nutrient-rich silt was then spread on the salt marsh adjoining the banks of the channel, and work was also done to improve drainage on the salt marsh. These improvements help the natural wetting and draining cycles of the soil that encourage vegetation to grow, the release said.
Andy Charlesworth, Asset Performance Advisor with the Environment Agency , said: “This is a perfect example of how we aim for the most benefit for people and the environment from everything we do.”
“We have a regular program of inspection and maintenance on our flood defenses, and we’re always looking for ways to achieve extra benefits at the same time. In this case, while we had our equipment on-site, we were able to use it in another way to give a boost to ecological conditions in the surrounding area at no extra cost.”
De-silting Tetney Haven took just over seven weeks and cost £127k. It was last de-silted 10 years ago, and the Environment Agency’s modelling shows it is unlikely to be needed again for another decade.
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