Visit Bruton’s Flood Storage Reservoir

Following memorable floods in 1979 and 1982, Bruton’s flood storage reservoir was built a mile upstream, to ‘slow the flow’, and hence protect the town from the flash-flooding that our Brue headwaters are prone to. The 1982 flood seriously damaged Church and Packhorse Bridges, the repairs to which are commemorated by a plaque on its downstream wall of Church Bridge, and a small "SCC 1984" inscribed at the foot of Packhorse Bridge. The Environment Agency also lowered the weir beneath Church Bridge to reduce flood risk.

Following a close-call in 2007, the flood protection bund and storage reservoir were improved in 2008, adding capacity to protect Bruton from likely impacts of climate change over the next 50 years, while also strengthening its embankment. Bruton is therefore arguably better guarded from flooding than any town in Somerset, but our unique geology, and consequent geomorphology, requires such hydrological damping.

Thanks to the Environment Agency team responsible for maintaining the Bruton flood storage reservoir, we are organising a field trip on Thursday 21 May, for supporters and volunteers to learn its hydraulic engineering secrets – Please sign up via Eventbrite to book your place. This visit is likely to be over-subscribed. Priority will be given to BrueCrew Members.

Please do consider donating £10 if you can, to enable BrueCREW to continue to host events like this, and fund our costs, such as insurance for our Riverfly monitors, and our balsam-bashing volunteers

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

River Brue Flood Water Retention Scheme, Not Applicable, Bruton, United Kingdom

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