Meeting documents

Councillor Hugh McCarthy - Chairman of the River Wye Task and Finish Group

Phillip Simpkin – Natural Environment Officer

In advance of the presentation Councillors A Hill, R Farmer, R Raja, Mahboob Hussain and Mrs L Clarke declared they had also been members of the Remaking the River Wye Task and Finish Group.  The members remained at the meeting and contributed to the discussion.

The Committee was provided with a presentation on the recommendations of the Remaking the River Wye Task and Finish Group.  The Chairman of the Task and Finish Group, Councillor Hugh McCarthy and Philip Simpkin, Natural Environment Officer, outlined each recommendation and the reasons behind these. 

Members made a number of points and received clarification on a number of queries. The discussion included the following:

·         Members were concerned that the achievements of the Eden centre were not acknowledged and highlighted the success of the shopping centre.

·         Shopping patterns were changing and it was suggested that the use of cars in town centres would lessen in the future.  The financial value of the benefits of opening up the river were difficult to quantify, however significant health and wellbeing benefits were expected and research showed that benefit to cost ratio for similar projects were in the region of £7 for every £1 spent.

·         Roadside drainage to avoid pollution from the road to the river would be considered and it was noted that Environment Agency had not yet highlighted any issues.

·         The existing culverts would have to be assessed however it was expected that some of these would need to be replaced.  If the river was remade then some culverts would remain, the extent would depend upon the finalised design and there would be less pressure on these in the future.

·         The costs of the full project was not yet confirmed, however the initial costs for the feasibility work had been prepared by civil engineers and was believed to be accurate.

·         The area could be improved with increased rentals on units and a restaurant culture by the river.

·         If the project to remake the river did not happen with the phase 7 town centre masterplan road works then there was concern that it would never happen.

·         The timescale of the project had not been estimated as phase 7 of the masterplan had not yet been agreed. It was noted that £3 million was the practical estimated cost to integrate the works for the river with the road works. 

·         The flyover was not expected to be removed in the near future and when building the Eden shopping centre there should have been consideration given to opening up the river at that time.  In response it was noted that the flyover was a key part of the current infrastructure but this did have a limited life expectancy.

·         There had been positive feedback via local groups on the project.

·         There was trout in some places in the river.  By remaking the river in the town centre this would improve the fish stocks upstream and improve the ecology in the area.

·         Once the culverts were removed it was expected that the river would have a natural gravel riverbed.

·         The river once remade was expected to be about 4 metres wide.  There would be variable flow which was expected as a chalk stream river.

The Chairman requested any comments on the recommendations which members would like to have noted for the Improvement and Review Commission to consider.   It was requested that the following comments be noted:

·         That sufficient water flow be made available to the river.

·         That the public should be consulted on the reopening of the river.

A majority of the Committee supported the recommendations.

Councillor Hugh McCarthy and Phil Simpkin were thanked for their comprehensive presentation and responses to the various questions.