£1.6m works start to repair Doncaster flood defence embankment

The embankment, which lies between the River Don and the South Yorkshire Navigation canal at Mile Thorn in the Wheatley Park area of Doncaster, suffered from damage before and during last winter’s flood conditions.

The bank slip could be at risk of destabilising the whole river bank if it is left unrepaired.

The £1.6 million works at Wheatley Park are expected to be complete by August and are part of an overall £32 million package of repair works across Yorkshire.

A large 42 tonne excavator has been transported to site using a pontoon, to help with the start of the repair works. Large barges are being used to transport materials in to repair the bank. Rock bags in engineered bays will be used to make the bank much more resistant to erosion.

Access to the site is restricted, so the Environment Agency has worked closely with Doncaster Council to set up a site compound near the site, and the Canal and River Trust has enabled teams to have access from the canal so that equipment can get to site safely.

Tony Hartley, project manager at the Environment Agency said:

This work is a significant repair job in difficult conditions, which will help strengthen this flood defence bank and reduce the risk of flooding to the local area.

We’re making good progress and we’re working within strict Government guidelines to carry out this work safely.

The repair works are being carried out by the Environment Agency’s framework contractor BAM Nuttall and their specialist contractor Waitings.

There are multiple repairs needed in the area but the most significant work is at this section where the bank has slipped. A programme of works is also in place to make repairs to other defects along the river banks.

Since the floods in November 2019, the Environment Agency has checked 650 kilometres of flood defence embankments across South Yorkshire and identified over 100 individual repairs that are required at a cost of £12.8 million, protecting around 6,000 properties.