John Gregory Dip Ag Eng. Civil Engineer, was responsible for gaining the necessary permissions for the Dam, Spillway and other waterworks including land drainage consent from the Environment Agency (formerly the National Rivers Authority)

John can be contacted : john_gregory@onetel.com

The number of ponds in Great Britain declined from about 470,000 in 1945 to 243,000 in 1998, but the creation of new ponds in recent years may have halted this decline.

Importance of ponds » Number of ponds » Wildlife in ponds » Lowland Pond » Find out more

Importance of ponds

Ponds cover a variety of aquatic habitats that can be seen throughout England and Wales. These can range from the familiar garden pond to farm ponds and well-established larger water bodies. Ponds can contain water throughout the year or they can be seasonal, holding water for only part of the year. While ponds have been present in the landscape for thousands of years it is only relatively recently that their importance as a habitat has been realised. Although typically small in size, ponds are abundant and they remain by far the most common standing waterbody type in Britain.

Ponds are valuable in the following ways:

• They are part of our national heritage in the form of moats, mill ponds and marl pits.

• They are of local and sometimes regional scenic importance.

• They have a leisure value.

• They have an economic function in the case of irrigation ponds, balancing ponds and fisheries.

• They are a wildlife habitat. Many plants and animals live in the water or at the water’s edge or use ponds at a stage of their life cycle.

• They provide a source of water for livestock.

Number of ponds

Ponds were once a common and central feature of village life, but their numbers in Great Britain have declined from about 470,000 in 1945 to 243,000 in 1998. Surveys suggest that, over the last decade, the decline in the number of ponds has been halted. Between 1990 and 1998 an estimated 24,000 lowland ponds were lost and 37,000 new ponds were created, giving a net increase of 13,000 lowland ponds (Figure 1).

Changing farming practices have made ponds largely redundant and this is one of the main causes of their decline. Since the late 1980s measures have been taken to stop this decline including changes to the Common Agricultural Policy and the introduction of more environmental land management schemes.

Wildlife in ponds

Ponds support at least two-thirds of Britain's freshwater plant and animal species, including uncommon species of national importance. These include specially protected plants and animals, such as:

• starfruit (Damasonium alisma)

• tadpole shrimp (Triops canciformis)

• fairy shrimp (Chirocephalus diaphanus)

• glutinous snail (Myxas glutinosa)

• great crested newt (Triturus cristatus)

• natterjack toad (Bufo calamita)

All of these species are included in the UK Biodiversity Action Plan, which aims to protect and improve populations of plants and animals at risk.

Lowland ponds 

Estimates of pond numbers come from various sources. A study by Swan and Oldham provided data on the distribution of static water bodies in 1945 and 1986. The Centre for Ecology and Hydrology (CEH) survey water bodies as part of the Countryside Survey. These surveys were undertaken in 1984, 1990 and 1998. The Lowland Pond Survey was conducted in 1996 and aimed to provide national estimates of pond ecological quality and amenity value for the first time. A pond was defined as "a body of standing water between 25m² and two hectares in area that usually holds water for at least four months of the year". The term lowland refers to areas of Britain defined as arable or pastoral landscapes within the Countryside Survey. The survey did not include ponds from upland and marginal landscapes or those found typically in gardens.

In Britain in 1996, a large number of countryside ponds were still being actively or accidentally filled in. This loss was probably related to agricultural activities such as field extension and commercial tree planting. In addition, 12% of sites had been built over as part of urban housing or road development. About 17,000 ponds were lost but 15,000 ponds were created between 1990 and 1996. It is not possible to tell whether this represents a statistically significant change in pond numbers.

Although new ponds are still being created the continued loss of established ponds remains an issue of concern. It is not yet known whether new ponds are replacing old ponds ecologically, as well as numerically, and there is no guarantee that existing schemes to promote pond creation will continue.

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