Scotch whisky production is the third biggest industry in Scotland. It is worth more than £5bn for the UK economy and growing fast. Can available water resources cope with demand?
Water is critical for many aspects of production, but mainly …
A fifth of Scotland is peatland. Healthy peatlands with high groundwater levels are crucial for trapping carbon – essential for Scotland to meet its emissions reduction target of 42% by 2020.
It is vital to ensure that peatlands remain effective …
A District Council with a local development plan in Oxfordshire. A proposed 1,000-house development needs a flood risk assessment to confirm it will meet sustainability criteria.
The Witney area has been subject to flooding from the River Windrush and from …
Countless areas in the UK are designated ‘at risk to flooding’, including residential properties, commercial properties, agricultural land and infrastructure. Engineering, financial and social constraints prevent flood protection being provided in all these areas.
Where there is a high risk …
There is little data and analysis available to support the benefits of natural flood management (NFM) in large catchments such as that of the River Clwyd in North Wales. The potential benefits need to be understood.
WHS …
The Grade-II-listed Pont-ar-Ddyfi is a bottleneck on the A487, a critical part of the Welsh north-south and east-west trunk road network. Floods of the River Dyfi regularly close the bridge and divert traffic 16 miles to get to and from …
Structures with their foundations in watercourses, such as bridges, are susceptible to scour. Scour increases the risk of damage and can even lead to structures collapsing. This is particularly significant with bridges on public highways, where collapse can lead to …
Much of the East West railway project, with significant engineering including embankments, new bridges and tunnels, is located in flood prone areas of the River Thames floodplain. It is crucial that the development doesn’t increase flood risk.
The longest new domestic railway to be constructed in Britain for over 100 years runs partly through the River Tweed Special Area of Conservation (SAC). Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) requires an Appropriate Assessment for this part of the route.
This …
A 132kV powerline tower needs to be replaced and relocated with new infrastructure in Neath. This must be done without contaminating the nearby waterbody, the Cefn Cwrt Reservoir, or changing its inflow volumes.
The hydrogeology of the area is quite …