£2m works to repair Doncaster flood defence are complete

The embankment, which lies between the River Don and the South Yorkshire Navigation canal at Mile Thorn in the Wheatley Park area of Doncaster, suffered from damage before and during last winter’s flood conditions.

The bank slip could have been at risk of destabilising the whole river bank if it was left unrepaired.

The £2 million works at Wheatley Park are part of an overall £32 million package of repair works across Yorkshire.

A large 42 tonne excavator was transported to site using a pontoon as part of the work. Large barges were used to transport materials in to repair the bank.

Over 580 rock bags weighing over 1,000 tonnes were placed in engineered bays, and have been used to make the foreshore much more resistant to erosion.

Access to the site was restricted, so the Environment Agency has worked closely with Doncaster Council to set up a site compound near the site, and the Canal and River Trust enabled teams to have access from the canal so that equipment could get to site safely.

Tony Hartley, project manager at the Environment Agency said: ‘This work was a significant repair job in difficult conditions, which has now strengthened this flood defence bank and reduced the risk of flooding to the local area. We are prepared to take action this winter wherever it is needed. Throughout the year we have continued to build and repair flood defences across Yorkshire, prioritising work to ensure we’re ready for winter.’

The repair works were carried out by the Environment Agency’s framework contractor BAM Nuttall and their specialist contractor Waitings, and ARUP.

Since the floods in November 2019, the Environment Agency has checked 650 kilometres of flood defence embankments across South Yorkshire and identified over 100 individual repairs that are required at a cost of £12.8 million, protecting around 6,000 properties.

There are 250 high volume pumps available and 6,500 trained staff across the country, including 314 trained flood support officers.

Environment Agency flood schemes protected almost 130,000 properties during the winter 2019/20 flooding. Our teams will always work around the clock to support the community and our top priority is the safety of residents and working with our partners to get people back into their homes as soon as possible.

In South Yorkshire, government has invested £44.3 million in flood defences since 2010, providing better protection for around 4,600 homes.

In Doncaster, over £19.8m has been invested in flood defences since 2010, providing better protection for around 4,191 homes.

There’s also a time lapse of the work available to view.

Click here for the original press release.