Cowbit farmer William Tyrrell hit out at Environment Agency ‘incompetence’ after River Welland bank collapses near Crowland
A farmer says planting crops for next year is now merely a ‘remote’ possibility thanks to a burst river bank which he blames on Environment Agency ‘incompetence’.
Cowbit man William Tyrrell says 50% of the land he farms with father Trevor has been impacted by the hole after a bank of the River Welland collapsed in the Crowland area yesterday, sending water flowing all over the surrounding area.
While he accepts the dangers of farming on a flood plain, Mr Tyrrell feels mistakes have been made to lead to this week’s issue. He is likely to lose a field of sugar beet and his planting schedule has been ruined as it is not known how long it will be until the hole in the bank will be repaired.
The Welland and other water courses had been running at high levels this week due to vast amount of rain brought by Storm Henk on Tuesday - causing homes to be flooded in the Stamford area and leading to the Bourne Eau breaching its banks in Tongue End.
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And Mr Tyrrell has placed the blame for all of these problems squarely at the door of the Environment Agency.
Mr Tyrrell said: “It is something should never have happened.
“They (the EA) are not doing their job properly. How much is it going to cost to repair it? They have probably saved two pennies by not doing anything but that is going to be written off with the repairs.
“We appreciate that we are farming on a flood plain but if the systems which are in place worked properly then this wouldn’t have happened. Now there is a big hole in the bank and how many months before that is repaired?”
Mr Tyrrell says that a vermin hole had been spotted in the bank and reported to the Environment Agency before the collapse.
He also says the EA sent someone with a video camera to monitor the situation yesterday, rather than an engineer.
Mr Tyrrell says that an automated siphon system was built in the 1970s in the Four Mile Bar and Newborough area.
He said: “It should take the top level of water and take the pressure without bursting the banks.
“If it had been built correctly and properly maintained, we would never have this problem we have got now.
“We accept and appreciate that we are farming in a flood plain, which will only flood in exceptional circumstances if the automated siphons did what they are supposed to do.”
Mr Tyrrell added: “Going forward, growing a crop next year is remote. This year’s cropping is out of the window at this moment. There is a big hole in the bank which takes away the possibility of growing a crop.
“It leaves us high and dry.
“At the present moment I have made phone calls to cancel a seed order. I have called British Sugar to say we won’t deliver and might have to reduce our contract for next year.
“What can we do?
“All over the country, food production is bring lost through the EA’s incompetence.”
He said that this year is not going to be a write off but that it will bring big challenges.
An Environment Agency spokesperson said: “As a result of the recent rainfall from Storm Henk, which fell on already saturated catchments, we are aware that a breach has now developed at Cowbit Wash on the River Welland.
“The area the water is filling is a flood storage reservoir and no properties are currently at risk.”
What do you think of this issue? Do the authorities have questions to answer for their part in the problem? Let us know in the comments below
