Abberton Reservoir

Published in Parish News - February 2004

There is an old saying "February Filldyke" referring to the fact that this is, often, the wettest time of the year. Water being such an essential requirement it is comforting to know that it available, at a price, by just turning on the tap. That was not always the case and it was the recognition that it was necessary to save water whenever possible that gave rise to our loosing a vast area of that other essential resource - land.

In this area the story begins with man seeking to exploit and use chalk found in large quantities throughout the country. The normal procedure was to dig pits and when this was done in South Essex it was not too long before the pit reached below the level of the water table with the result that the pits flooded. This led to attempts to drain the water into the Thames and it was not too long before an enterprising group realised that the water could be used to supply nearby houses. This, in turn, led to more houses being built and the formation of a number of water companies one of which eventually became the Essex and Suffolk Water Company who operate the Abberton Reservoir.

Built between 1935 and 1939 at a cost of £500,000 and covering some 1,200 acres the reservoir covers the valley through which the Layer Brook flowed. The Layer Breton Tithe Map of 1842 contains details of the fields now covered by the water and so we have lost names such as Further Church Field, Hither Church Field and Lower Kitchen Field, would now require a diving suit to explore. A number of farms, mainly in Abberton, were demolished and cottages along the Layer Breton causeway were also lost. Known as Brook Cottages in 1901 they were homes to the Foakes and Goody families and just before they were flooded local lads fishing in the Brook were said to get refreshments from one of the ladies living there.

The Reservoir was authorised by an Act of Parliament, in 1935, which gave the Company power to acquire the land and easements for pipes conveying water, and the construction of the treatment works at Layer de la Haye, together with other pumping facilities. The Act also placed a duty on the Company to honour existing rights for locals to take water for their own use. Although fed by the Brook Abberton, unlike most other reservoirs draws mainly from one source, the River Stour at Stratford. An aqueduct brings the water down to the Abberton end where an earth dam, with a centre core of puddled clay, was built to retain the water. Small amounts of water still flow from the Brook but as the top soil was removed from the valley, which was flooded to a maximum depth of around 25 feet it is clear that most of the 26,000 megalitres is pumped in.

Compensation was paid to property owners but there must have been considerable inconvenience when paths and roads were either closed or diverted. Pipe laying would also have caused some disruption and it is still possible to identify, in places, the route taken - across Layer Breton Heath in particular.

Construction of the earthworks was almost all carried out by manual labour in days before large excavators and bulldozers were available. Clay puddling was done by manpower stamping on the clay to ensure that all the air and fissures, which occur naturally, were removed. Nowadays, of course pile drivers and other heavy machinery would be used. Possibly four industrial diesel locomotives were used to move and relocate top soil from the site. They were built by John Fowler & Co. (Leeds) Ltd for the Water Company, being of 2 ft gauge, and were appropriately named after local villages. When no longer required two were sold to a cement company in Kent. "Peldon" survives and is still in use at the Amberley Museum Industrial Railway Collection, Sussex, where it was restored from a derelict condition.

No sooner had the reservoir been flooded than, as part of the anti invasion measures, it was sown with mines to prevent enemy seaplanes landing. Using a grid pattern 140 mines were used being secured to concrete blocks to weigh them down. During hard winters it was not unknown for ice to cause the occasional explosion but, nevertheless, a number were revealed by the droughts of the 1980s when water levels fell. Army and navy bomb disposal experts (they were sea mines originally but were then on the land which caused a demarcation problem for the services!) were called in to blow up those still dangerous but, as the reservoir never dried out completely, it seems likely that some still exist. The passage of time has, more than likely, rendered them harmless by now. There are also records of patrols by the local Home Guard to protect installations but nothing in the way of direct enemy action seems to have taken place.

Although much of the water required by local villages came from pumps, at the time the reservoir was planned and built, residents in this area did not benefit at all. The storage facility was used to supply water to the south of the County and the nearest users are in Witham and Chelmsford. A few company owned houses in Tiptree took their supply from the main pipe but these have long since been sold off. Water being such a scarce commodity, particularly in dry East Anglia, Abberton is a very important storage facility in an essential supply chain. Drawing from the River Stour which, in turn, is supplied in part, from the River Ouse and beyond from the Denver Sluice near Downham Market, Norfolk, Abberton is a vital holding site for all the water needed by our thirsty neighbours.

A most important spin off from the reservoir has been the creation of the Essex Wildlife Trust's Nature Reserve and Visitor Centre at Layer de la Haye. This arose from the fact that the site has attracted 260 species of birds. As the very informative booklet "Aspects of Abberton Reservoir" by Andrew Thompson of the Essex Wildlife Trust notes, this large body of water has a major interest for migrating birds. When you stop to admire the mallards bear in mind that birds ringed at Abberton have been recovered in Russia and Spain, teal as far away as Greece and Turkey, and gadwall in Russia and Poland. There are also said to be a number of very large fish but anglers are restricted to the two causeways.

Also it is worth bearing in mind that when Abberton was constructed it took up to 10 years in planning in the 1930s and since that time housing developments have raced ahead. One has only to look at Tiptree to gauge the scale of expansion and it is little wonder that plans are afoot to meet this type of pressure in the years to come. More houses means more water is needed and, inevitably, larger storage facilities will be required. At the same time land is scarce and additional pipes will be required to both receive and deliver supplies. To this end it is expected that the height of much of the reservoir will be raised to the west of the Layer de la Haye causeway which will require new earthworks.

The Nature Reserve area will be redefined and new facilities provided by the Company for the Essex Wildlife Trust. There will, inevitably, be disruptions but at the end of the work it is anticipated that demands by both consumers and wildlife will be met, and that we will still be able to enjoy the natural "tourists" who visit the reservoir. If you would like more information on Abberton then call in at the Reserve. For an update on developments Jim Jenkins at the Essex and Suffolk Company is the man to contact and he is more than willing to explain the timetable of planned work. The Layer de la Haye works are not open to the public not just because there is mine in the foyer - that is, fortunately, unarmed! The reservoir is only accessible to permit holders the number of which is restricted on grounds of safety and because it is a Site of Special Scientific Interest and a Special Protection Area and has been designated as of International Importance by the EC.

On a final note - does anyone know of a German aircraft crashing somewhere between Blind Knights and the reservoir during the war. If you can help the Company would be most grateful?

Page created: 03 FEB 2004