Lake Project FAQ
1. What are we doing?
The lake is being drained in 2010 to allow a comprehensive survey of the dam by reservoir engineers
The draining of the lake gives us a rare opportunity to assess the need for restoration and conservation of historical features, including those underwater and not normally visible. We have identified a number of works that could take place during the project.
As the water garden is on the river course the Lake is prone to a build up of silt. The silt is deposited on the Lake bed and affects the quality of the water for inhabitant wildlife therefore we will dredge the Lake and remove it.
The overall aim of the project is to improve water quality as a nature conservation measure and reinstate the eighteenth century integrity of Studley Lake by repairing existing features, reinstating lost features and removing features that have been established against precedent. This will restore the lake and a section of the River Skell.
2. Why are we doing it?
The lake is a reservoir and under the Reservoirs Act we are legally obliged to survey the lake dam yearly and more comprehensively when required by the Reservoir Inspector. The last comprehensive inspection was in 1987. By removing the silt the water quality will be improved immensely, benefiting inhabitant wildlife and wildfowl.
The key date in the history of Fountains Abbey & Studley Royal was identified in our World Heritage Site Management Plan as 1781. This was when the gardens of Studley Royal were at their finest and it is our aim to restore the gardens to how they would have been at this time. The creator of the garden, John Aislabie, carefully designed the Lake to create three principal viewpoints:
1. The view across the Lake into the water garden as you arrived from Park
2. The view out of the water garden across the cascades to create a one sheet
of water
3. To act as a mirror to the sky.
The silt island, the result of early 19th century dredging works, obscures these views and is not part of the original garden design.
The opportunities presented by this project mean that this is the most important historic and nature conservation project undertaken on the estate for over 20 years.
3. How long will it take?
We started thinking about this project in 2005 and by the end of 2010 we will have completed the majority of the works within the lake area – namely dredging, island removal, bank stabilisation, dam inspection/repairs and conservation works to the boat house. We had originally aspired to work down stream of the lake at the entrance to the Seven Bridges valley and whilst this work has received approval that work will now be done at a later stage.
4. Where will the silt go?
The results of the silt analysis show it can be reused as organic soil improvement. Therefore the silt will be used by a local farmer on arable land near the estate. The soil from the island will be stored in Mackershaw quarry.
5. Where will the drained water go?
Wet weather notwithstanding, the contactor will start to drain down the lake in a controlled way using pumps. This will help reduce the amount of silt entering the lower river course. Throughout the year normal flows will be pumped or piped around the works. In a normal summer the river flow can be very small.
6. What will happen to the water fowl and fish?
Depending on what advice we get from the fisheries department of the Environment Agency some fish will be relocated in the upper or lower water bodies. It is anticipated that they will want to carry out health checks on any caught fish before they are relocated.
Removing the vegetation and trees at the back of the lake and on the island will help to prevent nesting. Advice taken from the RSPB and other agencies suggests that most water fowl will find nesting locations on other water bodies on or near the estate. Again, following their advice the landscape team will be visiting the island on a regular basis to discourage birds from nesting in a benign way.
7. What will happen to amphibians?
The National Trust continues to consult closely with independent ecological advisers to mitigate the impact on the wildlife which lives in and around the lake. We have undertaken detailed ecological surveys of the Lake, which indicated that frogs and toads use this waterbody, with potential newt interest in some outlying areas of work.
Detailed methods of working have been agreed with the local planning authority to safeguard amphibians. These include daily visual inspections of the lake throughout the project and any trapped animals will be removed. Additionally, in areas where there is potential risk to amphibians, searches will take place before any deposition of materials takes place.
Amphibian ramps will be constructed at intervals along the new walls of the east bank to aid access to and from the lake for amphibians.
Where necessary, spawn, tadpoles or adult frogs and toads will be translocated from Studley Lake to upstream water-bodies within 500 metres of the lake. This will be undertaken to maintain amphibian populations on site.
One of the main aims of the project is to improve the water quality and enhance the species diversity of the lake. This will result in a much improved habitat for amphibians.
8. Why have you removed the trees at the back of the island?
The alders that established themselves on the lake edge are self sown and have grown since the/ a lake dredging exercise in the 1950s. They topple over falling in to the Lake pulling large sections of the bank away and as a result the east bank has become badly damaged. We aim to restore the eastern bank and reform a brand new edge as you can see on the western side. To do this work we have to remove the alders.
The hillside directly behind the lake had become a dumping site for previous dredging and former owners had planted it with Japanese larch and Lawson’s cypresses. Originally, the bank would have been planted with beeches, oaks and limes. It is intended that all of the larch and cypresses will be removed and replanted with native trees but at the moment only a small number have been removed so that we can work on the east bank.
9. What is the fence for?
Most construction jobs dictate that a site barrier must be erected to prevent unauthorised access. As this project is set within a deer park we have installed a temporary deer fence to act as the barrier. The fence will be removed at the end of the project this year. We anticipate that sections of small fencing will be required to help keep moving vehicles and site equipment away from visitors.
10. Can we still feed the ducks?
Most of the ducks and geese will move away from areas directly affected by the Lake works, however it is likely that many will remain on site choosing to nest at other areas of the estate.
12. What if it rains?
The project designers have tried to calculate the effect that wet weather will have on the project. It is hoped that as the silt is moved to the edges and dries out then rewetting shouldn’t be too much of a problem. However, if we have severe flooding, as we saw in 2009, then the work will have to stop until it is practical to start again.
13. Where is the money coming from?
The funding for the project is coming from the estate's accumulated reserves.
14. What consultation has taken place?
The National Trust management team have held discussions with Harrogate Borough Council, Natural England and the Environment Agency.
15. How can visitors find out more?
Weekly updates can also be found at the exhibition about the project in Studley Car Park and also in Studley Tea Rooms.
Visitors and local residents will have the opportunity to comment throughout
the project via comments cards placed in the Studley Lakeside exhibition room
and also by leaving comments on the Fountains Abbey website.
