George Heritage - A Field Guide to British Rivers

5 Chapter 5Figure 5.1 Controls on river channel form and function, where thicker lines ...Figure 5.2 Timeline of river and catchment alteration in the United Kingdom ...Figure 5.3 Historic change in UK river systems (a) Middle Ages – semi‐natura...Figure 5.4 Spatial extent of river channel and floodplain change in England,...Figure 5.5 Key developments in stream science over the period 1960–2020h...

1 Cover Page

2 Title Page

3 Copyright Page

4 Dedication Page

5 Foreword

6 Table of Contents

7 Begin Reading

8 References

9 Place and River Index

10 Subject Index

11 Wiley End User License Agreement

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George Heritage

Salford University, Salford, UK

Andy Large

University of Newcastle, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK

David Milan

University of Hull, Hull, UK

This edition first published 2022

© 2022 John Wiley & Sons Ltd

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Library of Congress Cataloging‐in‐Publication Data

[ISBN 9781118487983]

Cover image:

Cover design by

In memory of Martin Charlton (1957–2021)

An unassuming academic with a brilliant mind, indubitable character and unbounded enthusiasm for his work and students. Martin will be missed by all who knew him. His influence will live on well beyond his short life.

Temperate rivers are influenced by many factors including geology, climate, soils, sediment type, flow and human activity. The complex interactions of the non‐anthropogenic controlling factors have led to a wonderful variety of river form in the British Isles. Sadly, however, almost all temperate rivers in the United Kingdom have suffered significant and long‐lasting modification and management that has all but destroyed this variety, instead creating simplified conduits for water and sediment designed primarily to drain the land and reduce flood risk. This book is intended to illustrate this variety, highlighting the many forms that temperate river systems take in the United Kingdom. In this volume, we cover upland and lowland channel types and include the full range of substrate conditions from bedrock through boulder, cobble and gravel through to silt‐dominated systems. In doing this, we describe examples gathered from over 30 years each of research and practical experience working with rivers and set these in the context of the current scientific knowledge to illustrate the natural functioning of temperate river types. We hope this will act as a practical, context‐sensitive and more sustainable template for the restoration and re‐naturalisation of degraded channels in the United Kingdom and as a working set of guidelines for those interested in understanding more about the rich variety of temperate river types. In doing this, we know other examples exist (e.g. the practical guides from the UK River Restoration Centre), and so we intend this volume with its balance between science and practicalities of river management to compliment these other approaches but essentially to act as a stand‐alone guide.