Reintroducing the beaver in a bid to combat future flooding

Beavers build dams which hold water upstream, allowing it to dissipate more slowly into the rivers system, reducing potential flood risks. Credit: PA

There are calls for beavers to be reintroduced to the wild as part of the future management of water to prevent flooding. A native species hundreds of years ago, British beavers were hunted to extinction. The dams they build in tributaries and ditches hold back water upstream, allowing it to dissipate more slowly into the rivers system. reducing the potential flood risk.

Campaigners believe reintroducing them to the wild could help as part of the future management of water to prevent flooding on the scale of what we've seen this winter on the Somerset Levels.

Bob Cruwys reports:-