Attingham Park Builds Willow Dams to Absorb Floodwater
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- Attingham Park rangers and volunteers are building dams, restoring ponds, and planting trees to slow water and prevent flooding in the River Severn and River Tern catchment.
- The work is one of eight projects under the Severn Valley Water Management Scheme, supported by Shropshire Council, designed to test nature-based solutions for flood resilience.
- The dams are built from willow wood harvested through pond restoration work on the Attingham estate itself.
- Park ranger Emilia Fahlstromova said the area has "dried up a lot" over the years and the team hopes to see more wetland species return as the land is re-wetted.
- Project manager Jane Birch said post-WWII drainage for food production needs to be reversed so land can hold more water and reduce flood risk downstream.
- David Gregory Kumar, BBC Midlands Today's environmental correspondent, said simple interventions like placing logs in streams are being tried in West Midlands rivers and tributaries, but not yet in the Severn itself.
Why it matters: Eight projects under the Severn Valley scheme are testing whether dams, restored ponds, and tree planting can reduce flooding across the Severn catchment. The work aims to generate evidence that helps landowners reverse post-war drainage practices that left farmland dry and flooding-prone downstream.
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