“Important events coming up”: Somerset Levels & Moors briefing 9 March 2023
This is a briefing prepared on Thursday 9 March by local Environment Agency officers, about upcoming events and activities on the Somerset Levels and Moors, following on in various ways from the area’s Major Incident of flooding earlier in 2023.
This briefing describes activities being carried out by the Environment Agency, and some news about events organised by Somerset County Council and the district councils.
The Environment Agency is a partner in Somerset Rivers Authority (SRA), along with Somerset County Council (which includes Somerset Highways), the four district councils (Mendip, Sedgemoor, Somerset West and Taunton, South Somerset), the Parrett and Axe Brue Internal Drainage Boards, Natural England, and the Wessex Regional Flood and Coastal Committee.
The main subjects below include public drop-in events in Moorland and Burrowbridge, the demobilisation of temporary pumps at five places, and a drop-in about Currymoor reservoir.
Download a PDF of this briefing: Environment Agency update briefing on Somerset Levels and Moors 9 March 2023
Pictured at the top of this page: demobilising at Dunball – some of the Environment Agency’s national stock of temporary pumps now being returned to storage.
Public drop-in events
Further to our update of 28 February, we [= the Environment Agency] wanted to let you know some upcoming key dates.
Our partners at the county and district councils are organising multi-agency drop-in events for residents and businesses who have been directly or indirectly affected by flooding this winter. These events will provide people with useful information and the opportunity to ask questions.
The drop-ins will be held at:
Moorland Village Hall on Monday 20 March, 4pm to 7.30pm.
Burrowbridge Coronation Hall on Monday 27 March, 4pm to 7.30pm.
Representatives from the county and district councils and relevant local organisations will be available to provide advice and support.
For more information please email infoccu@somerset.gov.uk with ‘Flood Drop-ins’ in the subject line.
We will also be coming along to these events. Please come and talk to us if you have questions or information to share. We will also have information on flood resilience and ways that communities can be better prepared for flooding.
We will do our best to answer your questions. However, some may be too technical to answer immediately and will need to be addressed at a later time, or we may not have the answers until we have completed our own post-incident review process. The results of this review process will be shared through future planned engagement.
Temporary pumps and road closures
Demobilisation of the temporary pumps continues, with two or three operational teams working at multiple locations:
Dunball: complete
Northmoor: 6 to 17 March
Haymoor: 7 to 9 March
Currymoor: 9 to 17 March
Elson’s Clyce: 13 to 14 March
Saltmoor: 14 to 15 March
The works at Northmoor will require intermittent traffic management, where vehicles may be stopped for short periods of time.
We are expecting the following road closures to be in place, subject to final permissions being granted. If there are any changes to these dates, we will let you know.
Huntworth Lane between Moorland and Huntworth will be closed overnight on 13 March from 7pm to 5am, for removal of the pumps at Elson’s Clyce.
West Yeo Road between Burrowbridge and Moorland will be closed overnight on 14 and 15 March from 7pm to 5am, for removal of the temporary pumps at Saltmoor Pumping Station.
We will use our social media channels to keep you updated.
We are sorry for any disruption this may cause and appreciate your understanding while we carry out this work.
Currymoor reservoir drop-in
We are carrying out improvement work on reservoirs across Wessex, as part of our legal obligations under the Reservoirs Act 1975. This is unrelated to recent flooding.
We will be holding a public drop-in for the Currymoor Reservoir on 22 March in the Williams Hall, Stoke St Gregory, from 5pm to 7pm.
This event is open to everyone but will be focused on answering questions that landowners and residents may have about the reservoir works.
Additional information and advice
Prepare for flooding in advance and stay up-to-date on weather information and warnings: https://check-for-flooding.service.gov.uk/plan-ahead-for-flooding
The Environment Agency on social media: Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/environmentagencywessex
Twitter: https://twitter.com/EnvAgencySW
Or visit: Somerset Rivers Authority
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SomersetRiversAuthority
Twitter: https://twitter.com/SRAnews
We know that recent events may trigger feelings of anxiety, fear or worry, particularly for those who have been previously affected by flooding. Mindline is Somerset’s emotional support and mental health helpline which is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week: 01823 276 892 (local) 0800 138 1692 (freephone).
For more information, please contact WessexEnquiries@environment-agency.gov.uk