Boosting nature in the Fens through the proposed Fens Reservoir

Today’s blog is written by Daniel Pullan, our Senior Conservation Officer for Cambridgeshire, Bedfordshire and Hertfordshire, on the opportunities for nature in the proposed Fens Reservoir. Please read to the end to find out how you can help by commenting on the latest plans for this new reservoir. 

A new public water supply reservoir in the Fens has been proposed. The RSPB wants your support once again, to make sure that this once in a generation opportunity protects and enhances the area’s wonderful wetlands for people and for nature. 

Anglian Water recently opened their second public consultation on a new public water supply reservoir near Chatteris, Cambridgeshire. 

The proposal is for a Grafham Water-sized reservoir, along with a sister reservoir project in Lincolnshire. If they go ahead, these will be the first public water supply reservoirs built in England for over 30 years. 

The reservoirs are being proposed to meet the urgent need for more drinking water in the region due to demand from an increasing population. There is also an urgent need to reduce taking water from the ground (groundwater abstraction), which is adversely affecting the region’s internationally important chalk streams and rivers that are increasingly running dry during the summer, killing much of the special plants and animals that make them their home. 

An opportunity for more nature in the Fens 

The proposed reservoir site is not too far away from our RSPB Ouse Washes nature reserve. This man-made flood defence stretches for nearly 21 miles across the Cambridgeshire Fens and its seasonally flooded wet grassland habitat holds internationally important populations of breeding wading birds such as Black-tailed Godwit and Snipe. However, for the last 40 years, these species have increasingly suffered from late spring flooding which washes away their nests and has led to rapidly decreasing populations. 

Anglian Water are proposing taking water from a number of sources in the Fens, one of which is from our RSPB Ouse Washes reserve. The project consultants are currently working out whether they could take water from the Ouse Washes reactively during the spring and whether this could reduce the frequency and severity of the devastating floods, safeguarding wader nests.  

If this option is given the go ahead, this could be an amazing conservation success, and a real solution to a hard to solve problem. 

The proposals in this consultation also suggest significant wetland habitat creation on and around the reservoir, as well as improving habitats along some of the Fen’s linear drainage channels which stop the landscape from flooding. There’s potential here to create an important new wetland ‘stepping stone’ in the middle of the Fens, that will connect to our other key wetlands like the Ouse and Nene Washes.  

Black-tailed Godwit (c) Ben Andrew/RSPB-Images.com

Improving local well-being 

The consultation proposals set out how the new reservoir could become a fantastic destination for local Fens communities. Despite being surrounded by farmland, there are limited opportunities for local people to enjoy the great outdoors and experience nature first-hand. With appropriate infrastructure, the new site could connect local people with wetland nature and provide an important resource to bolster physical and mental well-being. 

Conserving carbon 

As much of The Fens was wetland before it was drained for agriculture, its soils hold significant residual amounts of peat. The oxidation and erosion of this peat leads to significant carbon dioxide emissions from The Fens every year, which contributes to temperature raising climate change. It will be important that the project treats any peat on the site properly, so it is not lost. It's also important that the construction and operation of such a large bit of infrastructure is done in the most carbon-efficient way possible, so we will press for this too. 

Although there are also risks… 

Even though overall we believe this reservoir has the potential to help a lot of wildlife, as with any large infrastructure project there are also potential environmental impacts from the proposals that need to be addressed. We ask Anglian Water to: 

• Be certain that taking significant quantities of water out of the River Nene and River Great Ouse does not impact on our ability to manage water on our internationally important Nene Washes and Ouse Washes nature reserves. 

• Ensure that the infrastructure for the proposed water abstraction points that would be on our Ouse Washes and Ouse Fen nature reserves do not significantly impact on the nature value of these sites, or our ability to take water from the River Great Ouse to supply our Ouse Fen reserve.  

• Locate a proposed treated water pipeline corridor that is set to go through our RSPB Fen Drayton reserve so that disruption to the habitats and wildlife at our reserve is minimised. 

• Look for an alternative site to place suggested wind turbines away from the reservoir as it is likely that many swans that winter on the Fens may roost on the reservoir, risking collisions and loss of life to these birds as they fly in and out.  

Your action has already made a difference 

Your responses to the first public consultation in October 2022 told Anglian Water loud and clear that the public wanted them to create new wetland habitats in and around the new reservoir, and that you wanted them to investigate how they could help our breeding waders during spring flooding on the Ouse Washes. Thank you! 

Your concerns over the possibility of them using the Ouse Washes as a destination for ‘emergency drawdown’ of water from the reservoir (i.e.: getting rid of the water in an emergency) also influenced them to develop their current solution for this, which totally avoids the Ouse Washes in emergency scenarios, which is a great result. 

How you can help again

If you are local to Cambridgeshire, you can help us speak up for nature again. You do not have to have had input into the first consultation to help us this time round. Please follow the step-by-step guidance below to respond to Anglian Water's second public consultation on the design concept for the reservoir. There are a lot of questions this time, but if you could answer those that we indicate below that would be brilliant.

The consultation closes on Friday 9 August so please do send your thoughts to them before that date and thank you for taking the time to speak up for your local nature. 

Go to the Anglian Water Fens Reservoir consultation page, fill in your details and press ‘continue’ then follow the question-by-question guidelines below. This blog content can also help to inform your wording on responses given.  

 For information, if you would like a see a summary of the proposals along with some maps showing their location before you get started go to the Fens Reservoir overview brochure.

Consultation questions: 

The emerging design for the reservoir site 

• Question 1 – In your own words please support the design vision and principles to create a project that benefits people, nature and water storage needs. Please support the ‘wetland first’ approach to habitat creation (where they prioritise wetland creation), the aspiration to join the reservoir up to other nature sites in the Fens by creating habitats that connect them and the principle of minimising earth moving so protecting peat soils. Please support the principle of making the project ‘carbon neutral’ (ensuring there is no net increase in carbon emissions) but suggest that any renewable energy generation needs to be appropriate to the sensitive nature of the site. 

• Question 2 – If you wish to comment on this question please do so. 

• Question 3 – In your own words please support the development of water-based recreational activities (like boating and swimming) on the lagoon part of the reservoir, with more limited usage of the other areas, so minimising disturbance to wildlife. 

• Question 4 – In your own words please support the widespread creation of wetland habitats, such as reedbeds and fen, both on and surrounding the reservoir site, including the use of wetlands to help clean the water entering the site. Please support the creation of habitats along the main drains to help connect the site to other important wildlife sites such as the Ouse Washes. Please support the creation of wetland habitat areas to the southeast of the reservoir that will not be disturbed by the public and suggest that these need to be created so that they are big enough to support some of our iconic Fenland species such as Bittern and Crane. 

• Question 5 – In your own words please support the provision of a mix of bridleways and cycle paths to allow people to experience wetland nature, whilst also having areas of habitat with minimal access aimed at benefiting sensitive nature. 

• Question 6 – Please answer as you wish. You may like to support the provision of footpaths and bridleways from local communities to the reservoir, helping to get people outside and exercising in nature. 

• Question 7 – In your own words, please support the aspiration to make the project carbon neutral (that is ensuring there is no net increase in carbon emissions) but suggest that any renewable energy technologies used need to be appropriate to the sensitive nature of the site. In particular, please suggest that wind turbines next to the reservoir may be a risk to wintering swans, and other technologies, such as solar, should be considered first. 

• Question 8 – Please fill in as you wish. 

Areas of land for environmental mitigation and enhancement, construction and wider uses 

• Question 9 – Please suggest that these blocks of land should be restored back to nature conservation use where appropriate, rather than agriculture, and that any habitats created should complement and be near those in and around the reservoir.  

• Once you are happy with your answers click on ‘continue’. 

Drawing water from sources and transferring it to the reservoir 

• Question 10 – In your own words please say that Anglian Water will need to ensure that taking water out of the Nene Counter Drain (a drainage channel next to the Nene Washes) will not impact on the ability to get sufficient water resources to manage the Nene Washes. Also please suggest that any changes in the amount of sediment building up within the tidal River Nene will need to be investigated. 

• Question 11 – Please indicate that Anglian Water will need to ensure that removing water from the Ouse Washes will not impact on the management of the site, or lead to more sediment clogging up the tidal River Great Ouse. Please say that any impacts on the nature of the Ouse Washes will need to be minimised. Please also encourage them to fully investigate whether they can help reduce spring flooding of the Ouse Washes by abstracting water reactively during the spring and early summer, so avoiding destruction of wading bird nests. 

• Question 12 – Please say that any impacts of the abstraction infrastructure (such as the water intake and pipeline) on the RSPB Ouse Fen reserve should be avoided and minimised. Say that abstraction from this point in the river must not hinder the RSPB’s ability to abstract winter water to manage our Ouse Fen Reserve. 

Our proposals for water sources more generally 

• Question 13 – If you wish to answer this question, please do so 

• Question 14 – again, if you wish to answer this please do so, otherwise leave it blank 

• Once you are happy with your answers click on ‘continue’. 

Water treatment works 

• Question 15 – if you have any comments on the location of the water treatment works, please put them in here. 

Supplying water to homes and businesses 

• Question 16 – Please say that this pipeline corridor crosses an area used by feeding wintering swans, and as such any construction activities need to avoid times of year that might disturb them. 

• Question 17 - As above, please say that this pipeline corridor crosses an area used by feeding wintering swans, and as such any construction activities need to avoid times of year that might disturb them. Also, the pipeline corridor to Madingley crosses the River Great Ouse and presently goes across a significant part of the RSPB’s Fen Drayton Lakes nature reserve, which includes the Middle Fen and Swavesey Meadows County Wildlife Sites. Please say that Anglian Water should review the corridor to minimise its interaction with the RSPB reserve, and that any construction will need to minimise and compensate for any impacts on habitats and the management of the site. 

•  Question 18 – please answer this question as you wish or leave it blank. 

Our proposals for water supply more broadly 

• Question 19 – please answer this question if you wish. 

• Question 20 – please answer this question if you wish. 

• Once you are happy with your answers please press ‘continue’ 

Other early-stage information 

• Question 21 – if you want to answer this question please do so or leave it blank. 

• Click on ‘continue’ 

Your experience of our consultation 

• Answer questions 22-24 if you wish and then press ‘continue’. 

Review your feedback 

• Review your answers, and once you are happy press ‘Submit Feedback’ right at the bottom of the webpage. 

 

If you got this far, well done and thank you for supporting the RSPB to get a positive outcome for nature in the Fens! 

Please bookmark this page about our Fens Reservoir work where we will be updating the outcome of this consultation, and hopefully your influence on it, later in the year. 

Main image: Lone Snipe walking across wetland by Chris Gomersall RSPB-Images.com