Taming the Flood: Rivers, Wetlands and the Centuries-Old Battle Against Flooding. Jeremy Purseglove

      

      

       Copyright

      William Collins

      An imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers

      1 London Bridge Street

      London SE1 9GF

       WilliamCollinsBooks.com

      First published in the United Kingdom by Oxford University Press, 1988

      This revised and updated second edition first published by William Collins in 2015

      This eBook edition published by William Collins in 2017

      Text © Jeremy Purseglove 1988, 2015, 2017

      Cover photograph showing sunset over the flooded Somerset Levels, February 2014 © Matt Cardy/Getty Images

      Jeremy Purseglove asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

      A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

      All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.

      Source ISBN: 9780008132217

      Ebook Edition © 2017 ISBN: 9780008132224

      Version: 2017-03-08

       Praise for Jeremy Purseglove:

      ‘Taming the Flood most deserves its status as a classic […] for its evocation of place […] the descriptions of wetlands are exquisitely written. This fine book calls for, and takes, a longer view.’

       The Sunday Times

      ‘His original determination remains the driving force of this compelling book. Mr Purseglove’s mission was to show why rivers really matter to England and how our wetlands are a vital part of the natural scene. His descriptions are wonderfully accurate, his writing captivating and his enthusiasm catching. On any level, it’s a good read, but, as a call to action, it’s outstanding […] It is his love of the subject, his deep knowledge and poetic insight that wins us from the very first page.’

      John Selwyn Gummer, Country Life magazine

      ‘Jeremy Purseglove has a gift that is increasingly rare in these days of scientific specialisation – of joining practical wisdom about working with nature and the land to an imaginative appreciation of their place in our history and culture.’

      Richard Mabey

      ‘An authoritative history of British wetlands and the centuries-old battle to control them. It is a celebration – beautifully illustrated – of life in and around the water and it is an eloquent plea to water authorities, to farmers and to Government to respect that life.’

       BBC Wildlife

      ‘Delightfully written and beautifully illustrated.’

       Observer

      ‘A pioneering and counter-cultural work.’

      Oliver Rackham

       Dedication

      To all those engineers, digger-drivers and farmers who are taking nature conservation seriously.

      *

      HOTSPUR. See how this river comes me cranking in,

      And cuts me from the best of all my land

      A huge half-moon, a monstrous cantle out.

      I’ll have the current in this place damm’d up,

      And here the smug and silver Trent shall run

      In a new channel, fair and evenly;

      It shall not wind with such a deep indent

      To rob me of so rich a bottom here.

      GLENDOWER. Not wind! It shall, it must; you see it doth.

      SHAKESPEARE, I Henry IV, III. i.

       CONTENTS

       COVER

       TITLE PAGE

COPYRIGHT

PRAISE

DEDICATION

PREFACE

1. River versus Drain: The Conflict within Traditional Flood Management

2. The Fear of the Flood: Traditional Attitudes to Wetlands

3. The Winning of the Waters: A History of the Fight against Flooding until the Post-War Era

4. The Wasting of the Waters: The Real Cost of Orthodox River Management

       5. Riverside Riches: The Need for Management on Wet Land and some Alternative Economic Uses

       6. Civilizing the Rivers: The New Approach to River Management

       7. Creative Flow: Rules for Good Practice in River Management

       8. The Last-Ditch Stand: The Wetlands Debate, 1974–1988

       9. The Flood Untamed: Rivers and Wetlands, 1988–2017

       PICTURE