River Quaggy Restoration Scheme Flashcards
What river is Quaggy a tributary of?
River Ravensbourne
Since when has river Quaggy been heavily managed and how?
1960s
- Artificial channels, culverts diverted water away from Greenwich
Where were urban developments and why did this mean more protection was needed?
Lewisham and Greenwich
- Needed protecting
Who proposed the scheme
Locals - formed Quaggy Waterways Actions Group 1990
When was the scheme introduced?
2002
7 parts of scheme
- Bring river back above ground
- Cut new channel and form multifunctional park
- Re-meandering and removing concrete lining
- Improved management and quality of park
- Culverts remained
- New lake
- Park lowered and shaped like a floodplain.
Where was a new channel cut through at
Sutcliffe Park
Where was re-meandering carried out and how much concrete lining removed?
Chinbrook Meadows
300 meters removed
Why did some culverts remain
To take some water underground when discharge very high
Why was a new lake formed?
To store water when culverts full
Why was the park lowered and shaped like a floodplain
Naturally collects water = stops water flowing downstream and flooding Lewisham
What characteristic of the area made this scheme possible?
Lots of green space
How much water can the park store? How many Olympic swimming pools is this equivalent to?
85,000 m^3
35 Olympic swimming pools
For how many homes and businesses did the scheme reduce flooding risk for?
600 in Lewisham and Greenwich
What effect did the removal of concrete banks have?
Allowed natural process - erosion and deposition could occur = features formed e.g. Gravel Bars
2 other environmental benefits
- Diverse environment for wildlife
- Wetland environment created by redirecting river to natural course and creating flood storage area = reed beds, wild flower meadows and trees
What award did the scheme win and when?
Natural Environment category 2007
‘Waterways Renaissance Award’ and ‘Living Wetland Award’
4 factors show effectiveness of scheme
- No major flooding since project completed
- Long term and sustainable
- low cost compared to hard engineering
- Few maintenance costs
Where does the river quaggy run through?
South east London
