Calceby Beck Restoration Lincolnshire Chalk Streams Project

The Lincolnshire chalk streams are a characteristic and attractive feature that has helped shape the Lincolnshire Wolds landscape over the past 10,000 years. Much of the rolling hills of the Lincolnshire Wolds has underlaying chalk that has been designated as an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.

Rain that falls on the Wolds is filtered through the underlying chalk aquifer. An aquifer means that it can soak up and hold rainwater – a bit like a sponge. Water then moves through fissures (cracks) in the chalk. The water emerges at ground level, from springs and blow wells, crystal clear and with a constant temperature of 10°C. These typical characteristics make them ideal to provide drinking water to many and are home to some of the rarest and threatened plants and animals, such as water crowfoot, water vole, otter, European eel and Brown trout. This section of stream suffers from silt and sediment runoff from nearby agricultural land. Excavation of chutes, backwaters, inset berms and channel widening were undertaken on the stream as well as wetlands, ponds, scrapes and woody debris were created in the floodplain alongside the stream. These features will not only provide habitat and improve biodiversity but will also improve water quality through filtering and catching sediment.