Bottesford Beck Erosion gets worse

18 June 2010 by Paul Rhoades

For years now there's been a bridge over Bottesford Beck accessible from the foot path which runs down the side of the church yard. The bridge crosses the beck in to woodland where a public footpath leads up to the Pink Pig farm and visitors centre. The west side of the bank contains a pathway which is maintained by the environment agency. Over recent years an ox-bow has started to form on the east side of the beck and its gradually eroding away in to the field. About 2 years ago the bank collapsed further taking the footpath with it, a new path was beaten through the undergrowth and following last weeks heavy rain this has now started the inevitable collapse. From what I'm lead to believe, having spoken to a Bottesford Parish Councillor on this matter, the responsibility for the east side falls with the land owner. As the path there is not a public footpath, the land owner is under no obligation to maintain it. Indeed those using it are technically trespassing across private land as the public aspect of the footpath goes up through the woods to the farm. The problem is that the path up the hill is steep, very muddy and very overgrown, so may people cut to the right away from the public footpath and take an easier route around the adjacent field. It's particularly difficult for older walkers. For years the farmer who owns this area has pretty much set aside the area for wild life, there was an attempt to plant the hillside last year, but the crop was poor. This whole area is used recreationally by a lot of people, from under age drinkers finding some where quite to have a crafty drink, to wild life spotters and dog walkers. It would be a shame to see it go. Erosion at Bottesford Beck

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[-]Comments hidden, click to expand. (1|0) By The Voice of Reason 2 years ago (1|0)Rated: Great!

I too have seen this erosion taking place, I live in the area, have done for 44 years, 29 of them backing on the Beck, this erosion has taken place for one reason only, water, to be more precise rain water from all the housing and shopping malls that have been built in the AshbyBottesford area for the last 50 years, it all ends up in the Beck since they started to separate it from the foul water drainage system to save money. This rain water as it heads down the beck through all the different outlets gathers pace to a point where the banks start to erode, well in Bottesford as in much of the valley its sand and as such it washes away easily. I can remember the Beck being no more than a 3 foot wide stinking ditch carrying the Ashby sewer farm overflow down to the Trent, since that got closed down and the Beck started to clean itself up and wild life returned but the increase in water flow has meant the Beck is now 12 foot wide with banks that are collapsing all the time, eventually they will take on a gentle slope once its wide enough to cope with the flow. Steady rain does not cause to much of an issue as the flash floods or heavy storms, then the Beck waters rise up to 6 feet above normal, to the tops of the banks in places. Back to the Bridge erosion as said its down to the water, so I wrote to the water boards and was told by them that it is the councils environmental agencies job, so I wrote to them and they thanked me for bringing it to their attention and have agreed that it is their responsibility and have sent people to look at it, the last I heard 3rd hand from a fellow dog walker and resident who spoke to a council chap on the bridge was that funds and materials are in hand to rebuild the bank, just waiting for the staff to become free. PS. the public footpath runs down the die of the churchyard over the bridge, across the front of the Copse to a point where the Copse ends and the path then heads up hill and along to the Pink Pig farm the land owners, there is an old path that goes up through the Copse to the top of the hill but it is not the official path.

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Bottesford Beck Erosion gets worse

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