Why this Catchment?

Over view

Why this Catchment?

The micro-catchment was selected in the GIS modelling step because it contains a large number of properties in Newton Poppleford that

are potentially at flood risk. The map below shows which buildings overlap with the EA’s modelled “Flood Zone 2” area, specifically areas at risk of flooding from rivers, as identified during the micro-catchment mapping process.

There are 29 buildings potentially at risk out of 123 in the catchment, approximately 24% of them. The catchment’s size of 8.7km2 gives an area of 0.3km2 per building at risk.

The water framework directive (WFD) status in the wider Lower River Otter catchment is Poor.

If property owners are willing to work with land owners and vice versa, then small-scale NFM measures upstream in the catchment have the potential to benefit a large number of properties and improve water quality.

Micro-catchment Over view

Topography

The micro-catchment covers the urban areas of the towns of Newton Poppleford and Burrow, as well as several farms, and is intersected by the A3052 through the middle. The micro-catchment forms the watershed for the Back Brook and its two main tributaries that flow northeast and southeast through Burrow and Newton Poppleford where it joins, as a tributary, the main River Otter. The total river length present in the catchment is approximately 17.8km. Overall, the micro-catchment falls within the Newton Poppleford and Harpford County Parish and is administered by Newton Poppleford and Harpford Parish Council. The map on the right shows the steepness of slopes. Back Brook is a confluence of two smaller unnamed streams, starting at the westernmost point of Burrow. These two streams lie at the bottom of shallow valleys that border a flat-topped hill, Harpford Hill, in the centre of the catchment. These two streams converge in a flatter plain that continues until Back Brook exits the catchment. There are several more, smaller, flat-topped hills in the catchment that border the streams. The town of Newton Poppleford is in the flattest part of the catchment.

Micro-catchment Over view

Land Cover

The way the land is used has significant impacts on flood management. Land use has been mapped here using the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology’s (CEH) Land Cover Map 2019. This is a model derived from satellite imagery at 25m resolution. The land use here is primarily arable and horticultural, accounting for 31% of the catchment, followed by the heather covering another 27%. Large areas of broadleaved and coniferous woodland border the heather in the western half of the catchment, making up another 25%. The rest of the catchment is made up from improved grassland and the urban areas. There is a single field of neutral grassland adjacent to the Back Brook on the western edge of the Burrow urban area. It should be noted that this land cover map model is not a perfect representation of land use as it simplifies UK land cover into very broad classes.

Micro-catchment Over view

Land Cover

Land use observed during the catchment walkover mostly matched the land use mapped here using the CEH Land Cover Map 2019.

There were conservation areas; an RSPB (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds) Aylesbeare Common Nature Reserve and a Clinton Devon Estates partneship Pebblebed Heaths Conservation Trust areas. These dominate the central upland Harpford Common heathland.

Harpford Common is surrounded by agriculture which was a mixture of beef, sheep and arable production. Some of the arable production noted on the map to the North of Newton Poppleford can be put to vegetables.

Copses of trees and woodland were interspersed throughout the catchment to the West of Newton Poppleford with some of the hedgerows now supporting corridors of mature trees.

The downstream rural valley sides next to the village were very oriented towards horse paddocks.

The base of Back Brook leaving Newton Poppleford and joining the main River Otter valley. This area is often flooded.

Priority Areas and Drivers

Flooding has the potential to negatively affect people and communities. By considering both the vulnerability of communities and the opportunities for land management interventions, actions can be targeted to have a positive impact on communities most at risk. Flooding is one of a number of natural hazards which can cause harm to people, the environment and the economy. The primary driver for targeting this catchment is flooding. However, there are other priority areas and drivers which will be affected by NFM and can determine the most appropriate type of NFM for the catchment. These are mapped in the following pages.