Ditchingham Mill By-pass
The Ditchingham Mill by-pass channel is a backwater of the River Waveney near the town of Bungay in Suffolk. The riverside public footpath crosses the channel and there are permissive paths that create a circular walk along the by-pass channel and on to the island. This stretch of river has an interesting local history; after the cessation of milling the channel became a recreational asset for the local population. At one time there was a yacht hire facility at the site. The adjacent island between the River Waveney and the by-pass channel has frequent otter spraints on prominent tree stumps and the area is a good foraging site for bat populations. The channel had become very overgrown with encroaching shrubs and fallen trees. The channel itself was silted up to a depth of less than 200mm in places.
This is an Environment Agency project, run jointly by the Flood Defence and Fisheries, Recreation and Biodiversity teams as part of the Transnational Ecological Network Project. Phase 1 of the project, which has been completed, consists of:
Clearing the by-pass channel to provide valuable habitat enhancements and provide additional capacity for floodwater. A riffle pool sequence has been created to encourage fish to spawn in this backwater. The channel will also act as a refuge area for fish during high river flows.
Tree management work to prolong the life of the willows, alders, ash and smaller species along the river bank-side has been completed. This also improves access along the footpaths.
Installation of gravel to enhance the riffles has also been undertaken.
New fencing has been placed along the adjacent grazing marsh to minimise cattle poaching of the edges.
Bat and owl boxes have been installed to maximise the use of the site by these species.
The Ditchingham Mill by-pass channel is a backwater of the River Waveney near the town of Bungay in Suffolk. The riverside public footpath crosses the channel and there are permissive paths that create a circular walk along the by-pass channel and on to the island. This stretch of river has an interesting local history; after the cessation of milling the channel became a recreational asset for the local population. At one time there was a yacht hire facility at the site. The adjacent island between the River Waveney and the by-pass channel has frequent otter spraints on prominent tree stumps and the area is a good foraging site for bat populations. The channel had become very overgrown with encroaching shrubs and fallen trees. The channel itself was silted up to a depth of less than 200mm in places.
This is an Environment Agency project, run jointly by the Flood Defence and Fisheries, Recreation and Biodiversity teams as part of the Transnational Ecological Network Project. Phase 1 of the project, which has been completed, consists of:
Clearing the by-pass channel to provide valuable habitat enhancements and provide additional capacity for floodwater. A riffle pool sequence has been created to encourage fish to spawn in this backwater. The channel will also act as a refuge area for fish during high river flows.
Tree management work to prolong the life of the willows, alders, ash and smaller species along the river bank-side has been completed. This also improves access along the footpaths.
Installation of gravel to enhance the riffles has also been undertaken.
New fencing has been placed along the adjacent grazing marsh to minimise cattle poaching of the edges.
Bat and owl boxes have been installed to maximise the use of the site by these species.
United Kingdom
Norfolk and Suffolk
