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44-634: The Caldicot and Wentloog Levels are two areas of low-lying estuarine alluvial wetland and intertidal mudflats adjoining the north bank of the Severn Estuary , either side of the River Usk estuary near Newport in south east Wales . They are also known collectively as the Monmouthshire Levels or Gwent Levels , and the name Wentloog is sometimes spelled Wentlooge in official publications. The Caldicot Level lies to

88-597: A Landscape of Outstanding Historic Interest in Wales . There have been variations in both land and sea levels in the Severn Estuary since the start of human habitation in the area. The Levels have been reclaimed from the sea at different times during the historic period, preserving evidence of patterns of settlement, enclosure and drainage systems. Mesolithic and later remains have been discovered at Goldcliff , and late Mesolithic human footprints at Uskmouth . One of

132-557: A drainage district are deemed to derive benefit from the activities of an IDB. Every property is therefore subject to a drainage rate paid annually to the IDB. For the purposes of rating, properties are divided into: Occupiers of all "other land" pay Council Tax or non-domestic rates to the local authority who then are charged by the board. This charge is called the "Special Levy". The board, therefore, only demands drainage rates direct on agricultural land and buildings. The basis of this

176-666: A recent publication by the Association of Drainage Authorities identified that 53% of the installed capacity (potential maximum power output) of major power stations in England and Wales are located within an IDB. Although of much reduced significance since the 1980s, many IDB districts in Yorkshire and Nottinghamshire lie in areas of coal reserves and drainage has been significantly affected by subsidence from mining. IDBs have played an important role in monitoring and mitigating

220-655: A 24-hour contact number and most extend office hours during severe emergencies. Associated with the powers to regulate activities that may impede drainage, IDBs provide comments to local planning authorities on developments in their district and when asked, make recommendations on measures required to manage flood risk and to provide adequate drainage. Internal drainage boards in England have responsibilities associated with 398 Sites of Special Scientific Interest plus other designated environmental areas, in coordination with Natural England . Slow flowing drainage channels such as those managed by IDBs can form an important habitat for

264-843: A diverse community of aquatic and emergent plants, invertebrates and higher organisms. IDB channels form one of the last refuges in the UK of the BAP registered spined loach (Cobitis Taenia), a small nocturnal bottom-feeding fish that have been recorded only in the lower parts of the Trent and Great Ouse catchments, and in some small rivers and drains in Lincolnshire and East Anglia. All IDBs are currently engaging with their own individual biodiversity action plans which will further enhance their environmental role. Many IDBs are involved with assisting major wetland biodiversity projects with organisations such as

308-705: A higher level, the IDB may make an application to the Environment Agency for a contribution towards the expenses of dealing with that water. District drainage commissioners (DDCs) are internal drainage boards set up under local legislation rather than the Land Drainage Act 1991 and its predecessor legislation. The majority of the provisions of the Land Drainage Acts, do however, apply to such commissioners and they are statutory public bodies. The most important in terms of size and revenue

352-564: A model complaints procedure for IDBs to operate. This move was aimed to increase the accountability of IDBs to the general public who have an interest in the way that IDBs are run and operate by providing an independent means of review. At this time Defra also revised and re-issued model statutory rules and procedures under which IDBs operate. There are 112 internal drainage boards in England as of 2018 covering 1.2 million hectares (9.7% of England's total land area) and areas around The Wash ,

396-531: A multitude of land functions. As with any engineered structure it must be maintained in order to function at or near its design capacity. Annual or bi-annual vegetation clearance and periodic de-silting (dredging) of these rivers and watercourses is therefore an essential component of the whole life cycle of these watercourses. Accommodating sustainability within the design and maintenance process for lowland rivers and watercourses has to address three essential elements: Many IDBs are redesigning watercourses to create

440-402: A stream bed, on a floodplain , in an alluvial fan or beach , or in similar settings. Alluvium is also sometimes called alluvial deposit . Alluvium is typically geologically young and is not consolidated into solid rock. Sediments deposited underwater, in seas, estuaries , lakes, or ponds, are not described as alluvium. Floodplain alluvium can be highly fertile, and supported some of

484-490: A two-stage or bermed channel. These have been extensively created in the Lindsey Marsh Drainage Board area of East Lincolnshire to accommodate the three elements of lowland watercourse sustainability. [REDACTED] Berms are created at or near to the normal retained water level in the system. It is sometimes replanted with vegetation removed from the watercourse prior to improvement works but

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528-404: Is a modelling tool developed through a Defra / Environment Agency research collaboration. IDBs use CES to estimate the seasonal variation of conveyance owing to vegetation growth and other physical parameters which they use to assess the impact of varying the timing of vegetation clearance operations. This is critical during the spring and early summer, the prime nesting season for aquatic birds,

572-417: Is a type of operating authority which is established in areas of special drainage need in England and Wales with permissive powers to undertake work to secure clean water drainage and water level management within drainage districts . The area of an IDB is not determined by county or metropolitan council boundaries, but by water catchment areas within a given region. IDBs are geographically concentrated in

616-471: Is multiplied by the annual value to produce the amount of drainage rate due on each property. Under Section 141 of the Water Resources Act 1991 the Environment Agency may issue a precept to an IDB to recover a contribution that the agency considers fair towards their expenses. Under Section 57 of the Land Drainage Act 1991, in cases where a drainage district receives water from land at

660-406: Is often left to re-colonise naturally. In all cases this additional part of the channel profile allows for enhanced environmental value to develop. The area created above the berm also provides additional flood storage capacity whilst the low level channel can be maintained in such a manner that design conveyance conditions are achieved and flood risk controlled. By widening the channel and the berm,

704-537: Is often referred to as "cover" because these sediments obscure the underlying bedrock . Most sedimentary material that fills a basin ("basin fill") that is not lithified is typically lumped together as "alluvial". Alluvium of Pliocene age occurs, for example, in parts of Idaho. Alluvium of late Miocene age occurs, for example, in the valley of the San Joaquin River , California. Internal Drainage Board An internal drainage board ( IDB )

748-402: Is that each property has been allotted an "annual value" which were last revised in the early 1990s. The annual value is an amount equal to the yearly rent, or the rent that might be reasonably expected if let on a tenancy from year to year commencing 1 April 1988. The annual value remains the same from year to year. Each year the board lays a rate "in the £" to meet its estimated expenditure. This

792-578: Is the Middle Level Commissioners . The majority of internal drainage boards are members of the Association of Drainage Authorities (ADA) their representative organisation. Through ADA the collective views of drainage authorities and other members involved in water level management are represented to government, regulators, other policy makers and stakeholders. At a European level ADA represents IDBs through EUWMA . In 2013 it

836-671: The Broads , Fens in East Anglia and Lincolnshire , Somerset Levels and Yorkshire . In comparison with public bodies in other countries, IDBs are most similar to the Waterschappen of the Netherlands , Consorzi di bonifica e irrigazione of Italy , wateringen of Flanders and Northern France, Watershed Districts of Minnesota , United States and Marsh Bodies of Nova Scotia , Canada. Much of their work involves

880-729: The County of Monmouth to maintain sea walls and other works to provide for the making and maintaining of roads in the said Levels and for other purposes." This was superseded in 1942 by the Caldicot and Wentlooge Levels Drainage Board, now the Internal Drainage Board or IDB. In 2012, the IDB was criticised in a report by the Wales Audit Office for overpaying staff, paying for trips abroad for its members, and acting unlawfully on other occasions. The IDB accepted

924-767: The Lincolnshire Coast, the lower reaches of the Trent and the Yorkshire Ouse , the Somerset Levels and the Fens have concentrations of adjacent IDBs covering broad areas of lowland. In other parts of the country IDBs stretch in narrow ‘fingers’ up river valleys, separated by less low-lying areas, especially in Norfolk and Suffolk , Sussex , Kent , West Yorkshire , Herefordshire / Shropshire and

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968-530: The Middle Ages . The Bristol Channel floods of 30 January 1607 ( New style ) , caused by either a storm surge or a tsunami , resulted in the drowning of an estimated 2,000 people, with houses and villages swept away, an estimated 200 square miles (518 km) of farmland inundated and livestock destroyed. This was one of the worst natural disasters recorded in Britain . Most of the levels has been

1012-668: The RSPB , National Trust and the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust . Many smaller conservation projects are co-ordinated with Wildlife Trusts and local authorities. Current projects include: The Great Fen Project (Middle Level Commissioners), Newport Wetlands Reserve (Caldicot and Wentlooge Levels IDB) and WWT Welney (MLC). Middle Level Commissioners launched a three-year Otter Recovery Project in December 2007. It will build 33 otter holts and 15 other habitat areas. All properties within

1056-645: The 19th century, the term had come to mean recent sediments deposited by rivers on top of older diluvium , which was similar in character but interpreted as sediments deposited by Noah's flood . With the rejection by geologists of the concept of a primordial universal flood, the term "diluvium" fell into disfavor and was replaced with "older alluvium". At the same time, the term "alluvium" came to mean all sediment deposits due to running water on plains. The definition gradually expanded to include deposits in estuaries, coasts, and young rock of marine and fluvial origin. Alluvium and diluvium were grouped as colluvium in

1100-668: The Caldicot and Wentloog Levels from Thomas Morris , a surveyor based in Newport. In 1884, the Caldicot and Wentlooge Level Act established a new body, the Monmouthshire Commissioners of Sewers, with responsibility for maintaining sea walls and roads in the Levels. The long title of the Act is "An Act to provide for the commutation of the liability of Landowners in the Levels of the hundreds of Caldicot and Wentlooge in

1144-466: The Severn Estuary by humans since Roman times. They have been patterns of settlement, enclosure and drainage systems belonging to successive periods of use, and are extremely rich archaeologically , with finds from the Mesolithic , Bronze Age and Iron Age periods. They are an important wetland resource. Parts have been designated as Sites of Special Scientific Interest . They are registered as

1188-475: The berm can be safely used as access for machinery carrying out channel maintenance. While in-channel habitat that develops can be retained for a much longer period during the summer months, flood storage is provided for rare or extreme events and a buffer zone between the channel and any adjacent land use is created. The timing of vegetation clearance works is essential to striking a sustainable balance in lowland watercourses. The Conveyance Estimating System (CES)

1232-575: The breeding season for many protected mammal species such as water voles and the season when many rare species of plant life flower and seed. Many IDBs have developed vegetation control strategies in co-ordination with Natural England . 111 IDB districts require pumping to some degree for water level management and 79 are purely gravity boards (where no pumping is required). 53 IDBs have more than 95% of their area dependent on pumping. This means in England some 635,722 hectares (2,454.54 sq mi) of land in IDB districts rely on pumping, almost 51% of

1276-537: The district (for instance the Middle Level Commissioners are also a navigation authority). IDBs are responsible to Defra from whom all legislation/regulations affecting them are issued. The work of an IDB is closely linked with that of the Environment Agency which has a range of functions providing a supervisory role over them. Defra brought IDBs under the jurisdiction of the Local Government Ombudsman (LGO) from 1 April 2004, and introduced

1320-608: The earliest human civilizations. The present consensus is that "alluvium" refers to loose sediments of all types deposited by running water in floodplains or in alluvial fans or related landforms . However, the meaning of the term has varied considerably since it was first defined in the French dictionary of Antoine Furetière , posthumously published in 1690. Drawing upon concepts from Roman law , Furetière defined alluvion (the French term for alluvium) as new land formed by deposition of sediments along rivers and seas. By

1364-583: The effects of this activity and have worked in close collaboration with the coal companies and the Coal Authority. The fundamental role of an internal drainage board is to manage the water level within its district. The majority of lowland rivers and watercourses have been heavily modified by man or are totally artificial channels. All are engineered structures designed and constructed for the primary function of conveying surplus run-off to their outfall efficiently and safely, managing water levels to sustain

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1408-782: The internal drainage board for one internal drainage district in East Sussex. In Wales internal drainage districts are managed by Natural Resources Wales . Internal drainage districts in England Key to abbreviations: IDB = internal drainage board IDD = internal drainage district (Environment Agency administered) WLMB = water level management board WMB = water management board IDBs have an important role in reducing flood risk through management of water levels and drainage in their districts. The water level management activities of internal drainage boards cover 1.2 million hectares of England which represents 9.7% of

1452-405: The land, the aim of the network of new waterways constructed as part of the reserve has been to keep the land flooded, albeit with fresh water. The levels support the following rare species: Alluvium Alluvium (from Latin alluvius , from alluere  'to wash against') is loose clay , silt , sand , or gravel that has been deposited by running water in

1496-408: The late 19th century. "Colluvium" is now generally understood as sediments produced by gravity-driven transport on steep slopes. At the same time, the definition of "alluvium" has switched back to an emphasis on sediments deposited by river action. There continues to be disagreement over what other sediment deposits should be included under the term "alluvium". Most alluvium is Quaternary in age and

1540-484: The maintenance of rivers, drainage channels ( rhynes ), ordinary watercourses , pumping stations and other critical infrastructure , facilitating drainage of new developments, the ecological conservation and enhancement of watercourses , monitoring and advising on planning applications and making sure that any development is carried out in line with legislation ( NPPF ). IDBs are not responsible for watercourses designated as main rivers within their drainage districts ;

1584-618: The marshes, such as at Nash and Redwick , before a sea wall was built along the whole coast. Goldcliff Priory was established in 1113 and together with other major landowners took responsibility for further drainage work in the area. Settlements became established, linked by droveways such as the Whitewall at Magor, and land was gradually reclaimed for pasture and arable use. A large number of Anglo-Norman sites including castles , churches, court houses, manor houses , moated sites and watermills show near-continuous occupation throughout

1628-412: The most significant finds was of a 3rd-century Romano-British boat found at Wilcrick near Magor . The Romans occupied the area from the 2nd to the 4th centuries. In 1878, a boundary stone marking the building of 33 paces of embankment by Roman soldiers was discovered at Goldcliff. Research suggests that, initially, reclamation of the natural salt marsh for farmland began at a few "island" sites within

1672-464: The northern Vale of York . The largest IDB (Lindsey Marsh DB) covers 52,757 hectares and the smallest (Cawdle Fen IDB) 181 hectares. 24 of the county councils in England include one or more IDB in their area as do six metropolitan districts , and 109 unitary authorities or district councils . The Association of Drainage Authorities holds a definitive record of all IDBs within England and Wales and their boundaries. The Environment Agency acts as

1716-562: The report and stated that the organisation's management had changed substantially since the time of the offences. Newport West MP Paul Flynn called for further police investigation into what had happened. The pattern of ditches now found on the Caldicot Level has been complicated by the construction of the Newport Wetlands Reserve . Whereas the raison d'etre of all previous reens and ditches had been to drain

1760-526: The southeast of Newport between the River Usk and River Wye and consists of 17,500 acres (71 km). It is home to Newport Wetlands Reserve . The Wentloog Level lies to the southwest between the River Usk and Rhymney River and consists of 8,500 acres (34 km). They are an agricultural region interspersed with suburban development. The levels are formed from tidal deposits and alluvium , which have been recurrently inundated and reclaimed from

1804-478: The subject of artificial drainage schemes, and the area is criss-crossed by drainage channels, known locally as ' reens '. Many of these are now managed by the Caldicot and Wentlooge Levels Internal Drainage Board . In 1531, Henry VIII set up Courts of Sewers to improve drainage, but without any powers to oblige landowners to carry out work. In 1828 the Commissioners for Sewers ordered a series of maps of

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1848-661: The supervision of these watercourses is undertaken by the Environment Agency . The precursors to internal drainage boards date back to 1252; however, the majority of today's IDBs were established by the national government following the passing of the Land Drainage Act 1930 and today predominantly operate under the Land Drainage Act 1991 under which, an IDB is required to exercise a general supervision over all matters relating to water level management of land within its district. Some IDBs may also have other duties, powers and responsibilities under specific legislation for

1892-496: The total land area. Reducing the flood risk to ~600,000 people who live or work, and ~879,000 properties located in IDB districts. Whilst many thousands of people outside of these boundaries also derive reduced flood risk from IDB water level management activities. Several forms of critical infrastructure fall within IDB districts including; 56 major power stations (28%) are located within an Internal Drainage District, 68 other major industrial premises and 208 km of motorway. In fact

1936-621: The total. A new pumping station was commissioned in April 2011 by the Middle Level Commissioners at Wiggenhall St Germans, Norfolk. The station replaced its 73-year-old predecessor and is vital to the flood risk management of 700 km (270 sq mi) of surrounding Fenland and 20,000 residential properties. When running at full capacity, it is capable of draining five Olympic-size swimming pools every 2 minutes. During times of heavy rainfall and high river levels IDBs: An IDB's priorities during flooding are: Some IDBs are able to provide

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