Upper Nar soil trapping

In the upper sections of the Nar Catchment, the river turns into a series of ditches. Some think that the river begins in Mileham, where numerous springs make an appearance. However, water still flows from these upper reaches, especially after heavy rain and during the winter.

The arable land is farmed close to these ditches, usually with roads bordering the other side. This causes sediment and pollutant run-off to flow straight into the ditches, which act as a pathway, carrying the run-off into the top section of the River Nar (Site of Special Scientific Interest).

As part of the WWF & Coca-Cola funded project to improve water quality in the River Nar, it was decided that sediment trapping was needed in this location. There was very little room for creating large silt traps (as done previously in other parts of the catchment), therefore, silt trap boards were installed into the bottom ditches instead. They were positioned so that they would not obstruct any culverts or field drains and could be easily maintained when needed.

This work will capture run-off before it reaches the main river channel in Mileham.