A reminder of the consultation being held by the Environment Agency on when to close the Welney Wash Road for flood barrier installation.

The consultation began in March (just before lockdown) and has been extended to the end of September. The Environment Agency says:

“We are asking for your views on when to close the road to build a concrete foundation slab across the Welney Wash Road. This work will allow us to install the demountable flood barrier in, if needed, to help protect the communities from any water spilling from the Ouse Washes.

Please be mindful this barrier (see below schematic) will be installed across the Welney Wash Road only when the Ouse Washes flood and the water level at Welney reaches a predetermined level.  When the Ouse Washes flood the Welney Wash Road is and will  remain impassable to traffic. This is a flood barrier that will protect against any water spilling from the washes and becoming a flood threat to the village.  

We appreciate that closing the Welney Wash Road will have considerable impact to the local community. We want to reduce that impact as much as possible by working with you to identify the most appropriate time of year to close the road for the construction works. There are times of the year when we are unable to carry out this work, due to bird overwintering and breeding on the Washes (November to March).

We expect that the total construction time will be 14 weeks. Out of these 14 weeks, we will need to close the road for 6-8 weeks.”

The consultation can be found at https://consult.environment-agency.gov.uk/east-anglia-c-e/welney-wash-road-barrier-work-timings/