Grafham Water - Misplaced Pages

Reservoir in Cambridgeshire

Grafham Water
Grafham Water
Grafham Water
Location	Cambridgeshire
Coordinates	52°17′53″N 0°18′54″W / 52.29810°N 0.31504°W / 52.29810; -0.31504
Lake type	reservoir
Primary inflows	pumping (River Great Ouse)
Primary outflows	water treatment
Managing agency	Anglian Water
Built	1965

Max. length	4.3 km (2.7 mi)
Max. width	2.35 km (1.46 mi)
Surface area	6.28 km (1,550 acres)
Max. depth	21 m (69 ft)
Water volume	57.8×10^ m (2.04×10^ cu ft)
Shore length	16 km (9.9 mi)
Surface elevation	42 m (138 ft)
Shore length is not a well-defined measure.

Grafham Water is an 806.3-hectare (1,992-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) north of Perry, Huntingdonshire. It was designated an SSSI in 1986. It is a reservoir with a circumference of about 16 km (10 mi), is 21 m (69 ft) deep at maximum, and is the eighth largest reservoir in England by volume and the third largest by area at 6.27 km (1,550 acres). An area of 114 ha (280 acres) at the western end is a nature reserve managed by the Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire.

The lake was created by building an earth and concrete dam, constructed by W. & C. French in 1965, and water is extracted and processed at an adjacent Anglian Water treatment plant before being piped away as drinking water. It was shown from the air, before it opened, in 'Look at Life (film series)' ' 1965 episode, 'Will Taps Run Dry ?', narrated by Tim Turner.

The reservoir was immediately colonised by wildlife and a nature reserve was created at the western side of the reservoir. The nature reserve contains semi-natural ancient (at least 400 years old) woodlands and more recent plantation woodlands, grasslands and wetland habitats such as reedbeds, willow and open water. The reservoir has nationally important numbers of wintering great crested grebes, tufted ducks and coots, and of moulting mute swans in late summer. A pond has a population of the nationally uncommon warty newt.

Water is obtained by pumping water from the River Great Ouse nearby. There are two pumping stations associated with the reservoir. One is located just behind the dam, the other at Offord Cluny alongside the River Great Ouse. At times of high potential flood risk, Grafham Water treatment works can increase the amount of water it takes up to maximum capacity to help reduce the risk of flooding along the river.

As of January 2011, it was the only site in England, and the first in the UK, to harbour the invasive killer shrimp (Dikerogammarus villosus).

Grafham Water is popular for a range of leisure activities including sailing, fly fishing and cycling. In 2019, a live-action gaming centre, Rumble Live Action Gaming, was opened in the woodland arenas on the edge of the reservoir.

The Grafham Water reservoir from the air

References

"Great Britain and Ireland - interactive county map". wikishire.co.uk.
"Designated Sites View: Grafham Water". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
"Map of Grafham Water". Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
"NRA Ferric Dosing of Grafham Water" (PDF). Retrieved 9 August 2019.
^ "Grafham Water". Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
"Buckden: A Huntingdonshire Village". p. 154. Retrieved 14 September 2015.
Nick Bingham; Andrew Blowers; Christopher Belshaw (2003). Contested Environments. John Wiley and Sons. ISBN 0-470-85000-0.
"Grafham Water citation" (PDF). Sites of Special Scientific Interest. Natural England. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 October 2012. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
"Alien 'killer' shrimp found in UK". BBC News. 9 September 2010. Retrieved 9 September 2010.
"Invasive shrimp found at Grafham Water". Environment Agency. 9 September 2010. Archived from the original on 14 September 2010. Retrieved 22 May 2011.
"Are you ready to 'Rumble'?". 28 August 2019.

External links

Media related to Grafham Water at Wikimedia Commons

Wildlife Trust Reserve

v t e Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Cambridgeshire
Biological	Alder Carr Aversley Wood Balsham Wood Barnack Hills & Holes Bassenhally Pit Bedford Purlieus Berry Fen Bonemills Hollow Brackland Rough Brampton Meadow Brampton Racecourse Brampton Wood Buff Wood Caldecote Meadows Cam Washes Carlton Wood Castor Flood Meadows Castor Hanglands Cherry Hinton Pit Chettisham Meadow Chippenham Fen and Snailwell Poor's Fen Delph Bridge Drain Dernford Fen Devil's Dyke Dogsthorpe Star Pit Elsworth Wood Ely Pits and Meadows Eversden and Wimpole Woods Fleam Dyke Fowlmere Watercress Beds Fulbourn Fen Furze Hill Gamlingay Wood Godmanchester Eastside Common Gog Magog Golf Course Grafham Water Great Stukeley Railway Cutting Great Wilbraham Common Hardwick Wood Hayley Wood Hemingford Grey Meadow Hildersham Wood Holland Hall (Melbourn) Railway Cutting Holme Fen Houghton Meadows Kingston Wood and Outliers L-Moor, Shepreth Langley Wood Little Catworth Meadow Little Paxton Pits Little Paxton Wood Madingley Wood Monks Wood and The Odd Quarter Nene Washes Orton Pit Orwell Clunch Pit Ouse Washes Out and Plunder Woods Overhall Grove Papworth Wood Park Wood Perry Woods Portholme Roman Road Sawston Hall Meadows Snailwell Meadows Soham Wet Horse Fen Southorpe Meadow Southorpe Paddock Southorpe Roughs St Neots Common Stow-Cum-Quy Fen Sutton Heath and Bog Ten Wood Thriplow Meadows Thriplow Peat Holes Upware North Pit Upwood Meadows Wansford Pasture Warboys and Wistow Woods Waresley Wood Weaveley and Sand Woods West, Abbot's and Lound Woods Whitewater Valley Whittlesford - Thriplow Hummocky Fields Wicken Fen Wilbraham Fens Woodwalton Fen Woodwalton Marsh
Geological	Adventurers' Land Barrington Chalk Pit Barrington Pit Ely Pits and Meadows Eye Gravel Pit Histon Road Shippea Hill Traveller's Rest Pit Upware Bridge Pit North Upware South Pit Warboys Clay Pit

Sites of Special Scientific Interest in Cambridgeshire

Biological

Geological

Wildlife Trust for Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Northamptonshire

Bedfordshire

Bedford	Begwary Brook Cople Pits Felmersham Gravel Pits Pavenham Osier Beds Sewell Cutting Sharnbrook Summit Wymington Meadow
Central Bedfordshire	Arlesey Old Moat and Glebe Meadows Barton Gravel Pit Blow's Downs Cooper's Hill Cut-throat Meadow Dropshort Marsh Fancott Woods and Meadows Flitwick Moor King's Wood and Rammamere Heath Lancot Meadow Landpark Wood Old Warden Tunnel Pegsdon Hills and Hoo Bit The Riddy Sallowsprings Totternhoe

Cambridgeshire

Cambridge	Cherry Hinton Chalk Pits Skaters' Meadow
East Cambridgeshire	Chettisham Meadow Doghouse Grove Fordham Woods Ouse Washes Soham Meadow
Fenland	Lattersey Norwood Road
Huntingdonshire	Arthur's Meadow Brampton Wood Gamsey Wood Godmanchester Grafham Water Great Fen Houghton Meadows Lady's Wood Pingle Cutting Raveley Wood Shepherd's Close Upwood Meadows Waresley and Gransden Woods Wistow Wood Woodwalton Marsh
Peterborough	Dogsthorpe Star Pit Southorpe Meadow Southorpe Paddock Stanground Newt Ponds Stanground Wash Thorpe Wood Wansford Pasture & Standen's Pasture Woodston Ponds
South Cambridgeshire	Beechwoods Buff Wood Cambourne Fulbourn Fen Gamlingay Cinques Gamlingay Wood Hardwick Wood Hayley Wood Lower Wood Overhall Grove Shepreth L Moor Trumpington Meadows

Northamptonshire

North Northamptonshire

West Northamptonshire

Categories:

See also

References

External links