Flood-hit village community close to Shropshire/Wales border granted licence to remove silt annually from problem brook
A flood-hit community has been granted a licence to removed silt annually from a village's problem brook.
The Environment Agency has approved the application for the Worthen Brook, in Worthen, close to the border between Shropshire and Mid Wales.
The licence was requested after work by Worthen with Shelve Parish Council, local councillor Heather Kidd and the local flood action group.
Flooding of the brook has taken place going back a number of years and cuts off around 30 homes at Millstream, and leaves the Brookside road covered in large amounts of mud.
A spokesperson for the Environment Agency said: “We understand the concerns of the local community and have been engaging with them for some time via the Worthen Community Flood Action Group, which is sponsored by Shropshire Council’s National Flood Forum.
“We have worked with the group to ensure its plans to remove silt from the Worthen Brook in the village are in accordance with environmental legislation. The community group now has a flood risk activity permit to remove silt annually.”
Councillor Richard Tongue, Chair of Worthen with Shelve Parish Council, said they were relieved to have reached a point where work can take place.
He said the developments are vital for the village residents.
He said: "The Parish Council has been working on this for years, and we're very happy that we're now at a stage where work can go ahead; this is a matter of major importance for local residents and we're glad to finally be able to get started, and that everything will be undertaken in an environmentally sensitive manner. We're always here to help."
Councillor Kidd said the parish would be paying for and appointing a contractor to carry out the work to the Environment Agency's specifications.
She said the application had been overseen by both the local and national Environment Agency.
Councillor Kidd also explained other work was taking place to help those affected by flooding in the village.
She said: "Shropshire Council's Flood Team also are working with the volunteer group to help them deal with the flooding when it happens – which has proved to be much more frequently over the last few years."
She added that removing the silt would not bring an end to flooding, but would allow water to run off more quickly.
