RainwaterLiving with A guide to working with nature to make your neighbourhood more flood proof 5 Simple ways to reduce local flood risk Protecting London’s wildlife for the future London Wildlife Trust The River Effra, West Norwood c.1870 Photo: Lambeth archives Although they can feel increasingly disconnected, cities Welcome and the natural environment don’t have to be separate. London was built around a network of rivers, many of which have since been pushed underground by our thirst for urban development and growth. However by working with nature to restore water’s natural flow that is often lost in cities, we can create resilience to extreme weather as well as providing beautiful spaces for people to enjoy and where wildlife can flourish. This guide gives an introduction to small scale projects that can do just this. The Lost Effra Project Led by London Wildlife Trust, the Lost Effra project is working with communities in Herne Hill and the surrounding area to promote practical ways of working with water and nature to prevent flooding. Find out more and say hello on Twitter @LostEffra or by emailing Helen Spring, Lost Effra Project Coordinator at [email protected]. London Wildlife Trust ©2014 2 Rainwater runs through Brockwell Park Inside p.4-5 Our forgotten river and its secret legacy p.6-7 Rising Damp by U.A. Fanthorpe Discover rain gardens At our feet they lie low, The little fervent underground p.8-9 Rivers of London Transforming grey into green Effra, Graveney, Falcon, Quaggy, Wandle, Walbrook, Tyburn, Fleet with living roofs Whose names are disfigured, Frayed, effaced. p.10-11 There are the Magogs that chewed the clay Reconnecting rainwater with To the basin that London nestles in. These are the currents that chiselled the city, the city through depaving That washed the clothes and turned the mills, Where children drank and salmon swam p.12-13 And wells were holy. Be water savvy with cheap They have gone under. Boxed, like the magician’s assistant. water butts Buried alive in earth. Forgotten, like the dead. p.14-15 They return spectrally after heavy rain, Meet local champions and Confounding suburban gardens. They inflitrate Chronic bronchitis statistics. A silken get top tips for starting your Slur haunts dwellings by shrouded own project Watercourses, and is taken For the footing of the dead. Being of our world, they will return Editor and illustrations: Helen Spring (Westbourne, caged at Sloane Square, Design: Jonny Hughes ([email protected]) Will jack from his box), Many thanks to everyone in and around Herne Hill that Will deluge cellars, detonate manholes, contributed to the Lost Effra project so far; your actions, Plant effluent on our faces, ideas and advice has made the project what it is today. Sink the city. Effra, Graveney, Falcon, Quaggy, London Wildlife Trust is the only charity dedicated solely to protecting the capital’s wildlife and wild spaces, engaging Wandle, Walbrook, Tyburn, Fleet London’s diverse communities through access to our nature It is the other rivers that lie reserves, campaigning, volunteering and education. Lower, that touch us only in dreams That never surface. We feel their tug www.wildlondon.org.uk As a dowser’s rod bends to the surface below Registered charity number 283895 Phlegethon, Acheron, Lethe, Styx. 3 The forgotten River Effra e suppression of one of London’s great rivers is little known to most dwelling on its former banks. 150 years ago, the river E ra owed from Norwood and Dulwich through Herne Hill and Brixton before curving around Oval and joining the ames at Vauxhall. In a time of rapid Victorian development, the E ra became increasingly polluted and was heralded a health hazard. e chosen solution was to con ne it within the new sewer system, but this was not the nal mark that the E ra was to make on London’s landscape. What’s the problem? What’s painting by MH Mellor painting by Herne Hill under water Lost rivers have a desire to return. Memorably in April 2004 the waters of the E ra dramatically ooded Herne Hill as 10cm of rain fell in just half an hour sending the sewers erupting into shops and homes. ese desperate scenes were repeated again in August 2013, when a burst water main exposed the same area’s vulnerability to ooding, covering the area once more in just 10 minutes. 4 London Wildlife Trust Herne Hill’s ability 2 The sewer system 3 The loss of green to fl ood can be put underneath the area is space in favour of hard down to three main already fuller than it would surfaces means rainwater factors: otherwise be due to the cannot soak into the ‘Effra water’ that drains ground but fl ows instead 1 The River Effra formed the landscape, creating from the surrounding into the nearest drain, valleys that rainwater area, before any of the fi lling the overstretched will run to and increasing water from our homes, sewers even further. fl ood risk in these areas. schools and businesses gets there. These factors make the area vulnerable to the extreme heavy rainfall events that we are experiencing more frequently in the UK as a result of climate change. Photo by Winch by Photo Solutions RUNS OFF SOAKS IN e solution lies in turning our urban areas from grey to green by soaks in runs off restoring the connection between rainwater and the river’s natural path. With the Lost E ra project we are using direct and practical initiatives to ease the demand on London’s dangerously overstretched drainage system. From putting Urban Natural a green roof on your shed to regreening your front garden, the Local fl ood risk is reduced; is reduced as plants cool the air following pages of this guide provide Tolerance to drought is increased around them; an introduction to these solutions as more water is held at ground Air quality can be improved as and what you can do to reduce local level; oxygen is produced and particles Water quality is improved as it is fi ltered out; ood risk. fi ltered by plants and bacteria; They provide new outdoor places Valuable urban wildlife for us to enjoy and relax in; Projects to increase plant habitats are created increasing Increased access to nature cover and hold water where biodiversity; improves people’s wellbeing; it falls can bring a huge The urban heat island effect that Signifi cantly cheaper than pipes, range of benefi ts to our causes London to be up to 9°C tunnels and hard engineering. neighbourhoods… hotter than its surrounding areas 5 London Wildlife Trust Rain gardens divert rainwater from buildings and hard areas into wildlife havens WHAT Rain gardens are shallow planted basins that allow water to drain naturally into the soil. When it rains, water that falls on hard surfaces like paving and ARE rooft ops can be diverted into rain gardens where it can soak into the ground or THEY? be absorbed by plant roots. Rain gardens provide simple, attractive and wildlife friendly ways to reduce fl ood risk and improve our urban areas. Native plants that can Rainwater attract wildlife and downpipe withstand occasional from roof fl ooding Raised edge (berm) Gravel holds water in temporary run stops pool but allows excess erosion water to overfl ow in very heavy rain Rainwater enters garden Soil mixed with sand and compost to improve drainage Water soaks into ground beneath the rain garden 02 Think about an overfl ow system so that your rain garden doesn’t fi ll up more than you intend it to! There is plenty of advice at raingardens.info TOP TIPS 01 03 Do an infi ltration test before Keep your rain you build your garden to know garden 3m away from whether you need to make the buildings to protect soil more permeable their foundations 6 FAQs Useful resources UK Rain Garden Guide at raingardens.info What’s the difference between Are they expensive? resilient planting. Planting native a rain garden and a pond? No - they are no more expensive species that are nectar rich Ponds are full of water most of than planting in other areas will encourage bees and other the time, whereas rain gardens of your garden! The biggest pollinators into your garden, are usually dry. They can tolerate cost involved is buying plants but avoid plants that are better occasional spells of flooding but but you can save money by suited to dry conditions such as this usually drains away a few splitting plants that you already lavender or those susceptible to hours after a storm. have in your garden or sharing root rot. new plants with friends and Will it attract mosquitoes? neighbours. What about maintenance? No – mosquitoes need standing The only maintenance that rain water for over a week to What can I plant in it? gardens need is occasional successfully reproduce, whereas You can really make it your weeding, and watering in dry a rain garden will only contain own. It is a good idea to plant weather when the garden is first water for a few hours following taller plants at the centre of planted to allow the plants to most storms. the garden with a variety of become established – not a lot! species to create dense and IN PRACTICE Rain garden on the Cressingham Gardens Estate, SW2 water flows from roof to garden Built: December 2014 Cost: £2,300 Planting for seasonal interest and biodiversity 150mm ponding area Rain garden wall (berm) excess water overflows onto lawn 200mm soil mix retains water for short period to reduce flooding 200mm type 3 material David McCollum, landscape architect Cressingham rain gardens At the top of Brockwell Park, on the Cressingham Gardens estate you’ll find the biggest rain SECTION garden THROUGH inRAIN GARDEN 1 Lambeth.