The River Huntspill (or Huntspill River) is an artificial river, in the Somerset Levels, in the Sedgemoor district of Somerset, England. It was built in 1940 to supply process water to ROF Bridgwater, and has resulted in reduced flooding of the lower Brue Valley. Huntspill Sluice at the river’s western end, also known as West Huntspill Sluice, separates it from the River Parrett.
A large section of the river and its surrounding lands has been designated as a national nature reserve which is managed by the Environment Agency.
The concept for the Huntspill River was first suggested by J. Aubrey Clark in 1853, as a way of improving the drainage of the lower River Brue. Despite his vigorous support for the plan, no action was taken, largely due to the difficulties of getting the two divisions of the Court of Sewers, one responsible for the river system above Langport and the other for that below Langport, to agree on who was responsible and how such a scheme would be funded.[1]
At the outbreak of World War II a new explosives factory, ROF Bridgwater, was proposed. This would need 4.5 million imperial gallons (20 Ml; 5.4M US gal) of process water per day. Louis Kelting, the Chief Engineer of the Somerset Catchment Board revived Clark’s plans, and combined the water supply solution with a drainage scheme.[2][3] In addition to supplying water to the factory an area of 45,000 acres (18,000 ha) was drained of which 4,000 acres (1,600 ha) regularly flooded.[4]
A 5-mile (8.0 km) straight channel was excavated using a dragline excavator during the early years of World War II. It was constructed as a priority war work, because of its importance to the munitions factory. The plans had been drawn up in late 1939, and by January 1940 the first excavations were being made.[5]
It ran from Gold Corner, where it was connected to the South Drain, to a new outfall on the estuary of the River Parrett,[5] and had retention sluices at both ends, so that it acted as a long reservoir.[6] It was intended that in the summer, when water supply was lower, it would serve as a reservoir with water pumped from the moors; in winter as a drainage channel, via gravity drainage.[5]
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