BART regularly receive emails from local community groups who are doing fantastic work around their stretch of river but are unsure of how to deal with woody debris within the channel. Many people are prone to remove it in order to ‘tidy’ rivers, however woody debris is a vital component of our watercourses and its removal can severely degrade their health.
This report gives some fantastic advice on how to manage woody debris:
http://www.therrc.co.uk/MOT/References/WT_Managing_woody_debris.pdf
Possible cases for selective removal can include:
- Debris accumulating on bridges and culverts, potentially resulting in localised flooding
- For navigation
- For canoeing
If you are a community group or landowner working alongside a river and would like some advice on what you can do to improve habitat and water quality, please get in touch with BART: info@bristolavonriverstrust.org
