The Houghton Brook starts behind the Pavilion on Houghton Regis Village Green and wends eastward. It is claimed as the source of the River Lea. Sustrans National Cycle path N0. 6. runs alongside the Brook through Houghton Regis. The waters easily collect debris from small fallen branches between the Green and across to Parkside. And then there are people who don't care and throw things into it.
My contact at the Environment Agency(EA) has now promised me that he "will get one of our Operations gangs to come and clear the brook. I will try and get this done ASAP."
The EA will attend to calls made to their incident number (0800 80 70 60 ) by members of the public reporting obstruction/blockages such as fallen trees. They don’t own Houghton Brook and have no legal responsibility to carry out any work on it. Maintenance of the brook is the responsibility of the land or riparian owner. The EA carry out maintenance works on the brook for flood defence purposes using powers granted to them by Government.
The EA have a brochure "Living on the Edge". If you own land or property next to a river, stream or ditch you are a ‘riparian landowner’ and this guide is for you. It has been updated with new information on who to contact for guidance on watercourses.
