Page 7 - AOSERA SUMMER NEWSLETTER 2023

Because open ditches also act as soakaways, normal rainfall in the past may not have
created noticeable water flows in some sections of ditches and may not have been sufficient to show up any blockages.
With the type of rainfall we experienced in November and December 2022, it is becoming increasingly important that ditches and culverts are kept clear to allow what might be substantial flows to escape to the sea to avoid flooding.
West Sussex County Council have an excellent frequently asked questions guide on riparian ownership and responsibilities; it can be found here:
https://www.westsussex.gov.uk/media/11194/riparian_owners_faqs.pdf
ESTATE DITCHES AND FLOODING
Two major jobs of installing new ringed soakaway manholes in South View and The Drive were completed in the last financial year; both these areas suffer from major flooding following heavy rain and have been on our list of intentions for a good few years. We are pleased to report that to date we have received good reports that these have been effective. However, following the recent extreme downpours, bigger issues were identified in The Drive with rain water running from Golden Acre into The Drive, also being fed from West Kingston Estate.The Board have plans of how to mitigate this, but firstly need to ensure that the east and west water courses through the estate are open, clear and running.
Board members have spent many hours during the past few months identifying potential blockage points. The water courses consist of open gullies and culverts, and as part of ongoing checks, it was found that a 92 metre culvert between two properties in The Drive was blocked. A professional drainage company was employed to jet and photo the culvert and it was found that near the centre of the culvert in the road was severely blocked with silt. Following the previous experience in Willowhayne Avenue, the Board agreed to the recommendation of the drainage company to install an inspection chamber to give access and
a rodding point going forward. This work was recently completed and the next planned step is
to rod in both directions.
The image above shows the large excavation to install the inspection chamber which has now been tarmacked and completed in The Drive.
Newsletter Summer 2023 page 7