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The Middle Level Commissioners are a land drainage authority in eastern England. The body was formed in 1862, undertaking the main water level management function within the Middle Level following the breakup of the former Bedford Level Corporation. [1]
The Middle Level is the central and largest section of the Great Level of The Fens, which was reclaimed by drainage during the mid-17th Century. The area is bounded on the northwest and east by the River Nene and Ouse washes, on the north by previously drained Marshland silts and to the south and west by low clay hills. The Middle Level river system consists of over 120 miles (190 km) of watercourses most of which are statutory navigations and has a catchment of over 170,000 acres (690 km2).
In the distant past Great Britain was part of continental Europe with the rivers of eastern England being tributaries of the River Rhine, which flowed across a flat, marshy plain, which is now the southern North Sea. Around 12,000 years ago, following the end of the last Ice Age, the sea levels rose, severing Britain from Europe and flooding the Fen Basin, a large hollow created as the ice retreated. [2] The fen area gradually became separated from the sea by extensive sand banks, which circled the fringes of the Wash. Within the fens, dense vegetation grew in the fresh water forming peat deposits, which built up over some 6,000 years. [3] During the Roman occupation, some embankments were erected to protect agricultural land from inundation by rivers and sea water, but when they left in 406, the Fens became a wilderness of marshes and flooding again. [4] However, some settlement occurred, particularly on a number of clay islands within the fens, including Ely and Ramsey. [5] The last stand against the Norman invaders took place in the region, and ended in defeat when Hereward the Wake was betrayed by the monks of Ely in 1071. [6]
The early thirteenth century was a particularly wet period, and the Fens suffered from frequent flooding. Recognition that any solution needed organising centrally came in 1258, when the first Commissioners of Sewers were appointed. They found it difficult to fund any kind of drainage works, as the population were unwilling to pay for them, but around 1400, the commissioners were given powers to raise taxes and punish those who refused to contribute. [7] John Morton, the bishop of Ely, set about straightening parts of the River Nene between 1478 and 1490, and Morton's Leam still bears his name. [8] The Wars of the Roses interrupted his plans for further land drainage projects, and the Dissolution of the Monasteries between 1536 and 1539 had a catastrophic effect on the region. Monasteries had supervised many land drainage initiatives, but once they were replaced by hundreds of small landowners, there was neither the resources nor the organisation to maintain the works, which rapidly fell into disrepair. High sea levels in 1570 broke through the Roman sea defences, and vast areas were flooded, as far inland as Bedfordshire. [9]
The next major advance was the construction of Popham's Eau, a channel connecting the River Nene to the River Great Ouse, which was completed in 1605. The project was the inspiration of Sir John Popham, the Lord Chief Justice, who assembled a team of associates to complete the work, all of whom would benefit from it. There were, however, still major problems with flooding in the Fens, and several commissions were held in the early seventeenth century to investigate what could be done. [10] Finally, in 1630, Francis Russell, 4th Earl of Bedford assembled a group of 13 other Adventurers, and with the approval of King Charles I, embarked on a grand project to turn all of the Great Level of the Fens into agricultural land. They were opposed by the local population, many of whom made a living from fishing, wild-fowling, catching eels and cutting reeds. [11]
They employed the Dutch engineer Sir Cornelius Vermuyden to manage the scheme, and he was given six years to complete it. When finished, they would divide 43,000 acres (170 km2) between themselves, in recompense for the money they had invested into the works. Another 12,000 acres (49 km2) would be given to the king, and 40,000 acres (160 km2) would be leased out with rents being used to maintain the works. There were nine major components to the works, including the Bedford River, (later called the Old Bedford River), which ran for 21 miles (34 km) from Earith to Salters Lode; Bevill's Leam, which ran for 2 miles (3.2 km) from Whittlesey Mere to Guyhirn; Peakirk Drain, which ran for 10 miles (16 km) from Peterborough Great Fen to Guyhirn; and improvements and reworking of Morton's Leam. [12] The straight course of the Bedford River was 10 miles (16 km) shorter than the old course of the Great Ouse, which meandered through Ely. The scheme was declared complete by a Session of Sewers, which met on 12 October 1637 at St Ives, but the following wet winter showed that there were serious flaws in its execution. [13] [12]
The Royal Commission of Sewers reversed the decision when it met at Huntingdon in 1639, and an Act of Parliament passed in 1649 (the "Pretended Act") authorised William Russell, 5th Earl of Bedford and his associates (the Company of Adventurers) to further drain the land. The Act divided the Bedford Level into three parts, each with its own Board of Commissioners, and so the North Level, the Middle Level and the South Level were formed. Vermuyden again managed the works, which included the cutting of the New Bedford River, running parallel to the Old Bedford Level, [12] which created a huge washland covering 4,700 acres (19 km2) from Earith to Salters Lode to store flood water. [14] Most of the work carried out was in the Middle Levels; some took place in the North Levels, but Vermuyen's plan for the South Level of a channel to prevent water from the rivers on the eastern edge of the fens from ever entering the lowlands was shelved, and was not finally implemented until the Cut-off Channel was built in the late 1960s and early 1970s. [12] The South Level Barrier Bank to the east and the Middle Level Barrier Bank to the west were constructed to protect the Middle Level from the flood waters. The work was again declared to be complete in 1656. [14]
By this time Parliament had taken over much of the King's former authority and it was deemed necessary and desirable to reincorporate the company via an Act of Parliament in order to satisfactorily manage the completion and maintenance of the scheme. The Bedford Level Corporation was created by the General Drainage Act (15 Cha. 2.) which received royal assent on 27 July 1663. The corporation's general objectives remained unchanged but its powers in respect of navigation rights and taxation were much improved. The organisation was to comprise a governor, six bailiffs, 20 conservators and the commonalty. [15]
The improved drainage caused a rapid shrinkage of the peat fen and land levels dropped. The rivers remained at their original levels, as their beds were covered in a layer of sand, and soon the rivers were higher than the surrounding land. Within 30 years flooding returned, and although the advent of wind pumps to raise water into the rivers helped the situation a little, it was not until the arrival of steam pumps in the early nineteenth century that the vision of the Adventurers was realised. Steam was replaced by diesel engines from 1913 and by automated electric pumps from 1948. [16]
The Middle Level suffered from the fact that the Nene flowed through it, and its outfall at Salters Lode was restricted by a sluice. Its channel was in a poor state, and some 250 mills had been erected to pump water into the drainage channels. Another issue was that the drains were used both for navigation, which required high water levels) and for drainage of the Fens, which required low water levels. Both groups petitioned the Bedford Level Corporation, who still had overall responsibility for the Middle Level, and in 1753, the Nene Act was obtained. This allowed the commissioners to collect tolls from all traffic using the Nene, which would be used to fund the scouring and deepening of the channel. However, it also prohibited use of the Tongs Drain, an emergency flood relief channel, until flooding had already occurred, which was clearly unsatisfactory. [17]
After protracted debate, the Middle Level Act (50 Geo. 3. c. 125) was obtained in 1810. This created commissioners who were entirely separate from the Bedford Level Corporation, with powers to raise drainage rates. All of the commissioners had to own land within the levels, and they had control of the internal waterways within the Level, although the Bedford Corporation were still responsible for the banks. The Middle Level was more or less independent from this point. [18] Drainage of the Middle Levels remained difficult, and rival schemes to divert the water through Wisbech and King's Lynn were proposed from 1836 onwards. All met with opposition but in 1843 a bill was prepared for a new channel (Middle Level Main Drain) to an outfall at Wiggenhall St Germans, [19] some 9 miles further down the Great Ouse, where low tide levels were 7 feet (2.1 m) lower than at Salters Lode. [20] The Bedford Level Corporation opposed the bill, as they felt that reducing the volume of water between Salters Lode and St Germans would lead to further deterioration of the river channel, but despite fierce opposition, the Act of Parliament (7 & 8 Vict. c. 106) was passed in 1844. As well as powers to raise more rates, the commissioners also received an annual payment from the Bedford Level Corporation, who no longer had to maintain Tongs Drain. The new main drain was completed in 1848. [21]
Until 1862, the Middle Level Commissioners were still nominally part of the Bedford Level Corporation, but this was resolved by a Separation Act (25 & 26 Vict. c. 104) obtained that year, which resulted in the Corporation having no jurisdiction to the west of the Old Bedford River. The commissioners took over all property, control and powers to raise taxes which they did not already have, and became a self-governing drainage authority. [21] The outfall sluice at St Germans lasted until 1862, when pressure of water destroyed it. The tides flowed along the outfall channel, flooding around 9 square miles (23 km2) of land. The replacement dam and syphons did not work well, and were replaced by a new sluice in 1880. [22] This in turn was replaced by a pumping station in 1934, [23] at the time the largest flood defence pumping station in the United Kingdom. It was replaced by a new pumping station in 2010, which retains that title. [24]
The Middle Level Commissioners consist of representatives from both the agricultural and non-agricultural sectors. Occupiers of agricultural property receive a rate demand direct from the Commissioners. The "rates" on non-agricultural properties, such as houses and factories, are paid through a special levy issued to the district councils within the Commissioners' area. These councils, Fenland District Council, Huntingdonshire District Council and the Borough Council of King's Lynn & West Norfolk are therefore, able to appoint representatives as Commissioners in respect of the payment made in relation to these properties.
The Middle Level Offices are now at 85 Whittlesey Road in March. The former offices in Dartford Road, dating to 1904, were bought by Wetherspoons and opened as The Hippodrome Hotel in 2014. [25]
Within the Middle Level there are 34 independent internal drainage boards initially set up in the 18th century and each responsible for the local drainage of their area. Most have pumping stations and discharge their run-off into the main Middle Level watercourses. Many of these IDBs are administered from the Middle Level Offices and their administrative and financial work is carried out by Middle Level staff. In addition, Middle Level staff also undertake engineering and planning liaison consultancy work for a large number of Boards. [26] The Internal drainage districts administered by the Middle Level Commissioners are: [27]
The Middle Level, apart from its flood protection role, is also the fourth largest navigation authority in the United Kingdom and is responsible for approximately 100 miles (160 kilometres) of statutory navigation and operates six navigation locks. The Nene-Ouse Navigation Link forms part of the Middle Level Navigations. The Link is at present is the only connection between the Great Ouse and the Main Canal Network. During a normal summer, over 1,000 passages of the Link-Route are made by pleasure craft. The Commissioners issue Navigation Notes, which provide navigation details for boat owners, who wish to use the system.
The Middle Level Waterways Users Committee consists of representatives of the Commissioners and Users of the Middle Level system. It advises the Commissioners of the different requirements for water use in the Middle Level area and assists them in meeting such requirements so far as the Commissioners are able to do.
Within the Middle Level Catchment there are three major national nature reserves at Woodwalton Fen, Monks Wood and Holme Fen as well as a number of smaller sites of more local interest. The Commissioners have a statutory duty to further nature conservation in the performance of their functions and operate a specific conservation strategy, which forms a basis for all their river maintenance operations. There is also a close working relationship with Natural England, in particular through the Conservation Committee, which includes representatives of the Commissioners, the Environment Agency, Natural England and the local Wildlife Trusts.
The River Great Ouse is a river in England, the longest of several British rivers called "Ouse". From Syresham in Northamptonshire, the Great Ouse flows through Buckinghamshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Norfolk to drain into the Wash and the North Sea near Kings Lynn. Authorities disagree both on the river's source and its length with one quoting 160 mi (260 km) and another 143 mi (230 km). Mostly flowing north and east, it is the fifth longest river in the United Kingdom. The Great Ouse has been historically important for commercial navigation, and for draining the low-lying region through which it flows; its best-known tributary is the Cam, which runs through Cambridge. Its lower course passes through drained wetlands and fens and has been extensively modified, or channelised, to relieve flooding and provide a better route for barge traffic. The unmodified river would have changed course regularly after floods.
The River Little Ouse, also known as the Brandon River, is a river in the east of England, a tributary of the River Great Ouse. For much of its length it defines the boundary between Norfolk and Suffolk.
The Fens or Fenlands in eastern England are a naturally marshy region supporting a rich ecology and numerous species. Most of the fens were drained centuries ago, resulting in a flat, dry, low-lying agricultural region supported by a system of drainage channels and man-made rivers and automated pumping stations. There have been unintended consequences to this reclamation, as the land level has continued to sink and the dykes have been built higher to protect it from flooding.
The Old Bedford River is an artificial, partial diversion of the waters of the River Great Ouse in the Fens of Cambridgeshire, England. It was named after the fourth Earl of Bedford who contracted with the local Commission of Sewers to drain the Great Level of the Fens beginning in 1630. It provided a steeper and shorter path for the waters of the Great Ouse, and was embanked to prevent them flooding the low ground of the South Fens. Throughout the project, the Earl and his Adventurers faced disruption from those who were opposed to drainage schemes. The project was deemed to have succeeded in draining the fens in 1637, but that decision was reversed in 1638. After a lull during the English Civil War, when much of the work was damaged, the Dutch engineer Cornelius Vermuyden worked with William Russell, the fifth Earl of Bedford to complete the drainage. Disruption and unrest continued while the work was carried out, resulting in the Adventurers employing armed guards. A second river, the New Bedford River, was cut parallel to the first channel, which then became the Old Bedford River. At some point, the Old Bedford River was split into two parts, when the upper section was diverted into the River Delph at Welches Dam, and the lower section was joined to the Counter Drain. Both parts retain the name, but are not connected to each other. The area between the two Bedford rivers acts as a large washland, which holds floodwater when the river channels cannot cope with the volume of water in them.
The New Bedford River, also known as the Hundred Foot Drain because of the distance between the tops of the two embankments on either side of the river, is a navigable man-made cut-off or by-pass channel of the River Great Ouse in the Fens of Cambridgeshire, England. It provides an almost straight channel between Earith and Denver Sluices. It is tidal, with reverse tidal flow being clearly visible at Welney, some 19 miles (31 km) from the sea.
The River Nar is a river in England, a tributary of the River Great Ouse. It rises at Mileham near Litcham in Norfolk and flows 15 miles west through Castle Acre and Narborough, joining the Ouse at King's Lynn. It has had a variety of alternative names, such as the Setch, the Sandringham, and Lynn Flu, though these are rarely, if ever, used today. In 2011 the Nar was recognised by the Environment Agency as one of the top ten most improved rivers in England and Wales.
Sir Cornelius Vermuyden was a Dutch engineer who introduced Dutch land reclamation methods to England.
The South Forty-Foot Drain, also known as the Black Sluice Navigation, is the main channel for the land-drainage of the Black Sluice Level in the Lincolnshire Fens. It lies in eastern England between Guthram Gowt and the Black Sluice pumping station on The Haven, at Boston. The Drain has its origins in the 1630s, when the first scheme to make the Fen land available for agriculture was carried out by the Earl of Lindsey, and has been steadily improved since then. Water drained from the land entered The Haven by gravity at certain states of the tide until 1946, when the Black Sluice pumping station was commissioned.
Burnt Fen is an area of low-lying land crossed by the A1101 road between Littleport in Cambridgeshire and Mildenhall in Suffolk, England. It is surrounded on three sides by rivers, and consists of prime agricultural land, with sparse settlement. It is dependent on pumped drainage to prevent it from flooding.
The Fens Waterways Link is a project to improve recreational boating opportunities in the counties of Cambridgeshire and Lincolnshire, England. By a combination of improvements to existing waterways and the construction of new links a circular route between Lincoln, Peterborough, Ely and Boston is planned. The project is being organised by the Environment Agency and financed from the Regional Development Agency and the European Union.
An internal drainage board (IDB) is a type of operating authority which is established in areas of special drainage need in England and Wales with permissive powers to undertake work to secure clean water drainage and water level management within drainage districts. The area of an IDB is not determined by county or metropolitan council boundaries, but by water catchment areas within a given region. IDBs are geographically concentrated in the Broads, Fens in East Anglia and Lincolnshire, Somerset Levels and Yorkshire.
Downham West is a civil parish in the English county of Norfolk The parish is 47.6 miles (76.6 km) west of Norwich, 16.3 miles (26.2 km) south-south-west of King's Lynn and 96.2 miles (154.8 km) north of London. The nearest town is Downham Market which is 2.5 miles (4.0 km) north east of the parish. The nearest railway station is at Downham Market for the Fen Line which runs between King's Lynn and Cambridge. The nearest airport is Norwich International Airport. The parish of Downham West, in the 2001 census, has a population of 285, rising marginally to 286 at the Census 2011. For the purposes of local government, the parish falls within the district of King's Lynn and West Norfolk.
The Witham Navigable Drains are located in Lincolnshire, England, and are part of a much larger drainage system managed by the Witham Fourth District Internal Drainage Board. The Witham Fourth District comprises the East Fen and West Fen, to the north of Boston, which together cover an area of 97 square miles (250 km2). In total there are over 438 miles (705 km) of drainage ditches, of which under 60 miles (97 km) are navigable. Navigation is normally only possible in the summer months, as the drains are maintained at a lower level in winter, and are subject to sudden changes in level as a result of their primary drainage function, which can leave boats stranded. Access to the drains is from the River Witham at Anton's Gowt Lock.
South Holland IDB is an English internal drainage board set up under the terms of the Land Drainage Act 1930. It has responsibility for the land drainage of 148.43 square miles (384.4 km2) of low-lying land in South Lincolnshire. It is unusual as its catchment area is the same as the area of the drainage district, and so it does not have to deal with water flowing into the area from surrounding higher ground. No major rivers flow through the area, although the district is bounded by the River Welland to the west and the River Nene to the east.
The Beverley and Barmston Drain is the main feature of a land drainage scheme authorised in 1798 to the west of the River Hull in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. The area consisted of salt marshes to the south and carrs to the north, fed with water from the higher wolds which lay to the north, and from inundation by tidal water passing up the river from the Humber. Some attempts to reduce the flooding by building embankments had been made by the fourteenth century, and windpumps appeared in the seventeenth century. The Holderness Drainage scheme, which protected the area to the east of the river, was completed in 1772, and attention was then given to resolving flooding of the carrs.
The Cut-off Channel is a man-made waterway which runs along the eastern edge of the Fens in Norfolk and Suffolk, England. It was constructed in the 1950s and 1960s as part of flood defence measures, and carries the headwaters of the River Wissey, River Lark and River Little Ouse in times of flood, delivering them to Denver Sluice on the River Great Ouse. In the summer months, it is also used as part of a water supply scheme for drinking water in Essex.
The Bedford Level Corporation was founded in England in 1663 to manage the draining of the Fens of East Central England. It formalised the legal status of the Company of Adventurers previously formed by the Duke of Bedford to reclaim 95,000 acres of the Bedford Level.
The Upper Witham IDB is an English Internal Drainage Board responsible for land drainage and the management of flood risk for an area to the west of the Lincolnshire city of Lincoln, broadly following the valleys of the upper River Witham, the River Till and the course of the Fossdyke Navigation.