Work begins on new dredging programme on the Somerset Levels
Targeted work on the River Parrett aims to boost capacity and reduce flood risk across the Levels and Moors
Work is under way on a vital new programme of dredging on the Somerset Levels to protect homes and businesses from flooding.
Since 2015, the Parrett Internal Drainage Board has delivered an annual programme of work to ensure that the River Parrett has sufficient capacity, allowing large volumes of water to be moved off the Levels and Moors and flow out into the Bristol Channel.
This work – which has been carried out since the Environment Agency’s most recent dredge in 2014 – has been funded through the Somerset Rivers Authority (SRA) as a key part of its annual budget (which is derived from council tax).
The most recent round of dredging work officially began on Tuesday (January 6), focussing on the section of the river downstream of Burrowbridge as far as the Northmoor pumping station.
Burrowbridge is a key area within the Somerset Levels and Moors, being the site of the confluence of the River Parrett and the River Tone, with the crucial A361 passing through the village.
Dredging this section of the river was identified as a key priority as far back as the Somerset 20-year flood action plan, which was assembled in the wake of the catastrophic floods of 2013/14.
This latest round of dredging is designed to coincide with some of the larger winter tides of the winter, and is expected to be completed in two to three weeks.
The river will be dredged using similar methods to those carried out in January 2025, with a platform-mounted excavator (operated by WM Longreach) pulling silt off the river bank and depositing it in the river channel.
From there, a specialist craft called the Borr (operated by Van Oord ) uses powerful water jets to “agitate and disperse” the silt, putting it into suspension and allowing it to be carried downstream on the outgoing tide.
For more information on the River Parrett dredging, call the Somerset Drainage Boards Consortium office on 01278 789906 or [email protected] (quoting ‘water injection dredging’ in the subject of any email).
The SRA will set its annual budget in early-March, which will include a commitment to future dredging or related improvements as part of its ‘enhanced programme’.
The draft programme for the 2026/27 financial year includes a commitment of £775,000 for “maintenance dredging and silt monitoring along three miles of the River Parrett downstream of Burrowbridge”.
The SRA board voted in September 2025 to continue water injection dredging until at least 2031/32.