Dredging our rivers is key to floods battle
From: Paul Muller, Sandal, Wakefield.
IT IS becoming more important to start dredging our rivers.
Andrew Vine (The Yorkshire Post, February 18) mentioned Sir Michael Pitt’s final remark in his 100 page report published in 2008 that the problem of flooding is likely to become worse. How true his words were.
Every day we are shown pictures of water running down roads and streets into people’s houses destroying their homes, and farmer’s fields with thousands of tonnes of water on them destroying the crop.
The rivers are the drainage systems of our land, when the soil cannot absorb any more water it will run off the uplands.
Every house and building in our land has a drainage system for sewerage for the water we use to wash ourselves in, and clean our utensils.
If there is a blockage or obstruction in the house drains, the toilet will overflow with disastrous results.
The solution is to unblock the drain.
The solution to flooding in the country is exactly the same as the house drain solution, that is to unblock our rivers by dredging and so remove all the blockages to the smooth flow of water from the hills to the sea.
Many years ago farmers did this job for us. It is impossible to slow the flow of water downhill it is too heavy.
No more new comprehensive new study. No more procrastination.
Just get on with it now and dredge the rivers from the hills to the sea.
Stop building houses on flood plains or see how it can be done in Holland.
From: Mr W.F. Kerswell, Picklescott, Church Stretton, Shropshire.
READING The Yorkshire Post I see the same problems are affecting your part of the country as ours in Shropshire – floods, potholes, reduced council services and a lack of affordable homes.
I am old enough at 80 to remember the terrible winter of 1947 followed by floods, which they prevented in following years by dredging the rivers as they do in the rest of Europe.
Potholes should be mended properly – that is cleaned out, dried, painted round inside with emulsion and then filled with tarmac.
That should be followed afterwards by surface draining with hot tar and chippings, rolled and, importantly, three days later the loose chippings are swept up to prevent them entering drains or acting as an abrasive on the road where wheels spin on the loose stones.
Get rid of expensive and useless snouts-in-the-trough contractors and return to direct labour from councils.