Life of a Chalkstream: Three decades of reservoir drought

Greetings!

Finally, 33 years after the last reservoir came online and after years of shouting and cajoling since then, the government and water companies seem to have got the message in a country that has 32 inches of rain a year but only requires 6 inches to supply its water needs – BUILD MORE RESERVOIRS!

The argument has also been turbocharged in the past couple of months with three British ‘heatwaves’ (how the people of southern Europe must laugh at our definition ….) with the subsequent hosepipe bans which we all know are largely for PR reasons rather than the expectation of having any practical impact.

Havant Thicket Reservoir currently under construction

So, the good news is that the excavators are currently at work creating two new reservoirs, to open in 2030 and 2035, plus four more in the final stages of design. And to add to this list, and of particular interest to us chalkstreamers, is the announcement by South West Water of Cheddar 2 Reservoir near Bristol which also includes a 35 mile pipeline to feed a smaller reservoir just south of Warminster (see map below), that will relieve the stress on the chalkstreams of east Wiltshire, in particular the River Wylye that has its source nearby.

Of course, this is a long way from being a done deal. South West will not be putting the contract out to tender for two years and in between, have to find partners to finance the project by way of the Competitively Appointed Provider (CAP) process which is an Ofwat inspired version of PFI for the water industry which built the London Thames Tideway scheme and Hampshire’s Havant Thicket reservoir which is under construction.

Reading between the lines the earliest that Cheddar 2 might break ground would be 2029, warp speed in water industry terms, so add another 10 years before the River Wylye might see the benefit. Call me a fool, but I am mildly optimistic. The CAP process opens the way for financing these megaprojects that are otherwise beyond the balance sheet of the water companies and government, rightly, has no appetite to step in beyond changing the planning rules.

Of course, we have been here with Cheddar 2 – it was first proposed in 2007, the survey work took place in 2012 and the project scrapped in 2018. At this rate an opening in 2038 will nicely mark the centenary of the opening on the original Cheddar Reservoir.

Map of Cheddar 2 Reservoir with east Wiltshire reservoir bottom right

To fish farm or not to fish farm is the question

Do you fancy the life of a fish farmer? It could be yours for £785,000 in the beautiful Chalke Valley in Wiltshire, on the River Ebble - a River Avon tributary.

Having worked as a teenager on a fish farm, I would not necessarily recommend it if you were looking for a Good Life style rural idyll. Now admittedly, where I worked was a full on commercial for-the-table enterprise which put me off eating trout pretty well forever. Having fished plenty of trout lakes I had often wondered why the gutted fish smelt of chicken – working in the fish farm explained why – the feed back then, in the 1970’s, was bulked up with rendered chicken. Today things are more enlightened: the food is soya or similar protein plus fish meal and fish oil. Yes, you have read that right. We harvest millions of tonnes of fish from the sea each year to grow millions of fish thousands of miles away because you cannot rear a fish without the essential amino acids that are only available from other fish.

Chalke Valley Trout Farm on sale via Strutt & Parker

Chalke Valley Trout Farm is up for sale because fish farms are closing at rate that makes the pub industry look positively thriving. They are, of course, caught in the general upwards spiral of energy, raw material and labour costs but equally the market for their raw material, trout, is disappearing both for eating and re-stocking. There was a time when trout were on every fish counter, but public taste has moved emphatically towards fish of the sea variety, with just high-end producers like Chalkstream Foods carving out a niche market. Likewise, there has been a precipitous fall in the number of put-and-take fisheries.

Back in the 1960’s the trout lake boom began; just about every existing available water body was pressed into action, queues forming on the opening day for any new venue. Soon, every landowner or farmer was digging a pond, throwing up a clubhouse and throwing in trout. Build it and they will come. They did and soon we had the 1970’s era of the Super Ova, pioneered by ex-NASA physicist Sam Holland at Avington Lakes in Hampshire which ushered in a two-decade long arms race for ever bigger trout until the 30lb mark was breached. That was probably the moment of peak trout.

River Ebble

Like the cartoon character Road Runner running off a cliff, it took a while for the realisation that the ground had disappeared beneath the feet of lake trout fishing as a major leisure activity. Quite why this happened is hard to precisely divine, though it was certainly not cost as in real terms a trout day ticket has never been cheaper. Perhaps it was a generational thing, a boom that came and went, the activity of no interest to the next generation. Certainly, the exponential growth of carp fishing has diverted potential recruits away from fly fishing for the 16–40 year age group.

So, should I buy this derelict trout farm as someone asked me? Yes, but probably not for trout farming – sell the nitrate credits and start a wild swimming enterprise.

Hello Lucy! Au revoir Jamie!

I am delighted to tell you of a new recruit to Fishing Breaks, Lucy Waddington, who started this week.

Lucy, who will support Sarah in the office, is a dedicated fly fisher who started her her angling life on the banks of Rutland Water, where her now-husband James and father-in-law, Rob Waddington taught her all the ropes. Lucy arrives with a great deal of rural knowledge having worked for an agricultural charity for the past few years.

Sadly, Lucy's arrival marks the end of Jamie Pankhurst’s time with us, at least in a full-time capacity. Jamie is off to deliver sailing yachts with his father between Mediterranean and west coast European ports with a plan to work up to transatlantic deliveries. However, the good news is that Jamie will still be with us as a guide and instructor between his salty destinations.

Lucy & James - 28 June 2025

Quiz

The usual random collection of questions this week inspired by the date and topics today.

1) What book with the original title (translated from the German) Four and a Half Years (of Struggle) Against Lies, Stupidity and Cowardice was published on this day in 1925?

2) Who were the respective Latin and Greek Gods of Sun?

3) Who pursued the Road Runner?

Answers are at the bottom of this Newsletter.