Call to do more to save beauty spot’s future
A COUPLE fond of visiting Etherow Country Park have warned more needs to be done to preserve its banks to stop them from being eroded.
David and Christine Martin say that since the flood in November last year, the level of water in the valley rose to approximately 1m above the level of the lake and say steps need to be taken to ensure the park’s future.
David said: “There is now the very great danger that the is bank will be eventually eroded so that the whole of the lake will drain into the river.
“The council has closed the path around the pool by removing the footbridge and apparently intends to ‘let nature take its course’.
“Loss of the Keg Pool will remove one of the great features of the County Park and a unique part of the landscape of Stockport will disappear forever.”
Etherow Country park , which lies between Marple Bridge and Romiley, was created in 1968 on the site of an old cotton mill.
It was one of the first country parks of its kind, lying within easy reach of Stockport and Manchester making it very attractive for wildlife lovers.
It receives more than 250,000 visitors every year with people coming to see its diverse habitats with wild flowers, plants, fungi and birds.
The far end of the park boasts the Keg Pool which was constructed in the 1820s by George Andrew, the original owner of the area, measuring about 2m above the level of the nearby Goyt River and retained by a bank of stones and earth.
That bank, normally between 3m to 10m in width provides an attractive circular walk around the lake and is home to a wide variety of flora and fauna.
One feature of the park is its system of lakes and wet lands along with a weir which provides a home for many species of water fowl.
Mr Martin added: “There has been extensive erosion caused to the retaining bank between the river and the Keg Pool by the washing away of trees and their roots system, so much so that at one point, the retaining bank has been reduced to less than about 2m in width.”
The council has been made aware of the concerns and is looking into them.