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Winter Flooding Of 2013–14 On The Somerset Levels
From December 2013 onwards the Somerset Levels suffered severe flooding as part of the wider 2013–2014 Atlantic winter storms in Europe and subsequent 2013–2014 United Kingdom winter floods. The Somerset Levels, or the Somerset Levels and Moors as they are less commonly but more correctly known, is a coastal plain and wetland area of central Somerset, in South West England, running south from the Mendip Hills to the Blackdown Hills. The Levels are a low-lying area around above mean sea level ( O.D.) which have been prone to flooding from fresh water and occasional salt water inundations. People have attempted to drain the area for hundreds of years. In the Middle Ages, the monasteries of Glastonbury, Athelney, and Muchelney reclaimed and enclosed much of the land. Drains and artificial rivers have been built and pumping stations installed. During December 2013 and January 2014 heavy rainfall led to extensive flooding with over 600 houses and of agricultural land, includi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Map Of Somerset Levels
A map is a symbolic depiction of interrelationships, commonly spatial, between things within a space. A map may be annotated with text and graphics. Like any graphic, a map may be fixed to paper or other durable media, or may be displayed on a transitory medium such as a computer screen. Some maps change interactively. Although maps are commonly used to depict geography, geographic elements, they may represent any space, real or fictional. The subject being mapped may be two-dimensional such as Earth's surface, three-dimensional such as Earth's interior, or from an abstract space of any dimension. Maps of geographic territory have a very long tradition and have existed from ancient times. The word "map" comes from the , wherein ''mappa'' meant 'napkin' or 'cloth' and ''mundi'' 'of the world'. Thus, "map" became a shortened term referring to a flat representation of Earth's surface. History Maps have been one of the most important human inventions for millennia, allowin ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Greylake
Greylake () is a 9.3 hectare geological Site of Special Scientific Interest near Middlezoy in Somerset, notified in 1987. This site, on the Somerset Levels, consists of 20 low-lying fields in the north west corner of King's Sedgemoor, and includes the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds Greylake nature reserve which has taken over arable farmland and is now home to northern lapwings, common snipe, Eurasian curlews, redshanks, yellow wagtails, skylarks, and meadow pipits. This location is the type section for the Pleistocene Burtle Beds, as it is probably the most complete Burtle Beds sequence in Somerset. It demonstrates a sequence of fluvial (or possibly glacial) gravels, marine intertidal silts and marine subtidal. Rich molluscan, ostracod, and foraminifera assemblages and a mammalian fauna, including red deer (''Cervus elephus''), aurochs (''Bos primigenius''), and fallow deer (''Dama dama'') have been recorded. [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dipsacus
''Dipsacus'' is a genus of flowering plant in the family Caprifoliaceae. The members of this genus are known as teasel, teazel or teazle. The genus includes about 15 species of tall herbaceous biennial plants (rarely short-lived perennial plants) growing to tall. ''Dipsacus'' species are native to Europe, Asia and northern Africa. Etymology The genus name (''Dipsacus'') is derived from the Greek word for thirst (''dipsa'') and refers to the cup-like formation made where sessile leaves merge at the stem. The name ''teasel'' derives from words such as Old English ''tǣsl'', ''tǣsel''; relating to the verb "to tease" – the dried heads of the plant were once used in the textile industry to raise the nap on woolen cloth. Description Teasels are easily identified with their prickly stem and leaves, and the inflorescence of purple, dark pink, lavender or white flowers that form a head on the end of the stem(s). The inflorescence is ovoid, long and broad, with a basal whorl of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Peat
Peat is an accumulation of partially Decomposition, decayed vegetation or organic matter. It is unique to natural areas called peatlands, bogs, mires, Moorland, moors, or muskegs. ''Sphagnum'' moss, also called peat moss, is one of the most common components in peat, although many other plants can contribute. The biological features of sphagnum mosses act to create a habitat aiding peat formation, a phenomenon termed 'habitat manipulation'. Soils consisting primarily of peat are known as histosols. Peat forms in wetland conditions, where flooding or stagnant water obstructs the flow of oxygen from the atmosphere, slowing the rate of decomposition. Peat properties such as organic matter content and saturated hydraulic conductivity can exhibit high spatial heterogeneity. Peatlands, particularly bogs, are the primary source of peat; although less common, other wetlands, including fens, pocosins and peat swamp forests, also deposit peat. Landscapes covered in peat are home to sp ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Clay
Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolinite, ). Most pure clay minerals are white or light-coloured, but natural clays show a variety of colours from impurities, such as a reddish or brownish colour from small amounts of iron oxide. Clays develop plasticity (physics), plasticity when wet but can be hardened through Pottery#Firing, firing. Clay is the longest-known ceramic material. Prehistoric humans discovered the useful properties of clay and used it for making pottery. Some of the earliest pottery shards have been radiocarbon dating, dated to around 14,000 BCE, and Clay tablet, clay tablets were the first known writing medium. Clay is used in many modern industrial processes, such as paper making, cement production, and chemical filtration, filtering. Between one-half and two-thirds of the world's population live or work in buildings made with clay, often baked into brick, as an essenti ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
River Brue
The River Brue originates in the parish of Brewham in Somerset, England, and reaches the sea some west at Burnham-on-Sea. It originally took a different route from Glastonbury to the sea, but this was changed by Glastonbury Abbey in the twelfth century. The river provides an important drainage route for water from a low-lying area which is prone to flooding which man has tried to manage through rhynes, canals, artificial rivers and sluices for centuries. The Brue Valley Living Landscape is an ecological Conservation biology, conservation project based on the Somerset Levels, Somerset Levels and Moors and managed by the Somerset Wildlife Trust. The valley includes several Site of Special Scientific Interest, Sites of Special Scientific Interest including Westhay Moor, Shapwick Heath and Shapwick Moor. Much of the area has been at the centre of peat extraction on the Somerset Levels. The Brue Valley Living Landscape project commenced in January 2009 to restore and reconnect habita ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
River Axe (Bristol Channel)
The River Axe is a river in South West England. The river is formed by water entering sinkhole, swallets in the limestone and source (river), rises from the ground at Wookey Hole Caves in the Mendip Hills in Somerset, and runs through a V-shaped valley. The geology of the area is limestone and the water reaches Wookey Hole in a series of underground channels that have eroded through the soluble limestone. The river mouth is in Weston Bay on the Bristol Channel. The river was navigable from the Middle Ages until 1915, during early centuries of which seeing some European trade. Geography The River Axe is formed by the water entering the cave systems and flows through the third and first chambers, from which it flows to the resurgence, through two Sump (cave), sumps and long, where it leaves the cave and enters the open air. It is the second largest resurgence on Mendip, with an estimated Drainage basin, catchment area of , and an average Discharge (hydrology), discharge ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
River Parrett
The River Parrett is a river that flows through the counties of Dorset and Somerset in South West England, from its source in the Thorney Mills springs in the hills around Chedington in Dorset. Flowing northwest through Somerset and the Somerset Levels to its mouth at Burnham-on-Sea, into the Bridgwater Bay nature reserve on the Bristol Channel, the Parrett and its tributaries drain an area of – about 50 per cent of Somerset's land area, with a population of 300,000. The Parrett's main tributaries include the Rivers Tone, Isle, and Yeo, and the River Cary via the King's Sedgemoor Drain. The long river is tidal for up to Oath. Between Langport and Bridgwater, the river falls only , so it is prone to frequent flooding in winter and during high tides. Many approaches have been tried since at least the medieval period to reduce the incidence and effect of floods and to drain the surrounding fields. In Anglo-Saxon times, the river formed a boundary between ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Polden Hills
The Polden Hills in Somerset, England, are a long, low ridge, extending for , and separated from the Mendip Hills, to which they are nearly parallel, by a marshy tract known as the Somerset Levels. They are now bisected at their western end by the M5 motorway and a railway, the Bristol and Exeter Railway, part of the Great Western Main Line. Location and history The hills stretch from Puriton, near Bridgwater, in the west, to Street, in the east. The ridge of the hill once accommodated a Roman road, from Ilchester to the port of Combwich. Roman and Iron Age objects from the "Polden Hill Hoard" are now in the British Museum. This road crossed the River Parrett by means of a ford, at the White House (White House Rhyne), on the Pawlett Hams. This western extension forms part of a Saxon route. The river crossing could only be used a few hours per day at low tide and was used by Samuel Taylor Coleridge in the 1790s when he stayed at Nether Stowey, to travel to and from Bristol. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Environment Agency
The Environment Agency (EA) is a non-departmental public body, established in 1996 and sponsored by the United Kingdom government's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, with responsibilities relating to the protection and enhancement of the environment (biophysical), environment in England (and until 2013 also Wales). Based in Bristol, the Environment Agency is responsible for flood management, waste management, regulating land and water pollution, and conservation. Roles and responsibilities Purpose The Environment Agency's stated purpose is, "to protect or enhance the environment, taken as a whole" so as to promote "the objective of achieving sustainable development" (taken from the Environment Act 1995, section 4). Protection of the environment relates to threats such as flood and pollution. The vision statement, vision of the agency is of "a rich, healthy and diverse environment for present and future generations". Scope The Environment Agency's remit c ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Charles, Prince Of Wales
Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. Charles was born at Buckingham Palace during the reign of his maternal grandfather, King George VI, and became heir apparent when his mother, Queen Elizabeth II, acceded to the throne in 1952. He was created Prince of Wales in 1958 and his investiture was held in 1969. He was educated at Cheam School and Gordonstoun, and later spent six months at the Timbertop campus of Geelong Grammar School in Victoria, Australia. After completing a history degree from the University of Cambridge, Charles served in the Royal Air Force and the Royal Navy from 1971 to 1976. In 1981, he married Lady Diana Spencer. They had two sons, William and Harry. After years of estrangement, Charles and Diana divorced in 1996, after they had each engaged in well-publicised extramarital affairs. Diana died as a result of injuries sustained in a car crash t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dredging
Dredging is the excavation of material from a water environment. Possible reasons for dredging include improving existing water features; reshaping land and water features to alter drainage, navigability, and commercial use; constructing dams, dikes, and other controls for streams and shorelines; and recovering valuable mineral deposits or marine life having commercial value. In all but a few situations the excavation is undertaken by a specialist floating plant, known as a dredger. Usually the main objectives of dredging is to recover material of value, or to create a greater depth of water. Dredging systems can either be shore-based, brought to a location based on barges, or built into purpose-built vessels. Dredging can have environmental impacts: it can disturb marine sediments, creating dredge plumes which can lead to both short- and long-term water pollution, damage or destroy seabed ecosystems, and release legacy human-sourced toxins captured in the sediment. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
