SEDGEMOOR District Council, alongside the Wildlife and Wetlands Trust and pupils from Northgate Primary School, have been busy planting up aquatic plants in Brewery Field today (May 26).

The “pond and swale system” which has been designed, forms an important part of the green/blue infrastructure.

The pond and swale system is known as ‘sustainable urban drainage’ (or SuDs for short), designed to accommodate all the surface water run-off from adjacent £16m Northgate leisure complex.

It is designed in such a way to slowly percolate the water through the system which will be planted with aquatic plants that will clean the water of pollutants and enable a big increase in bio-diversity and ecological value.

The Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust advised on the best plants to complement the pond and swale and the pupils enjoyed the planting and learnt about how the plants capture hydrocarbons and clean the water through filtration.

This system is helping with Sedgemoor District Council’s climate change programme.

Plants planted are:

  • Hard rush (juncus inlfexus)
  • Water Forget-me-not (myosotis scorpioides)
  • Marsh Marigold (caltha palustris)
  • Flowering Rush (butomus umbellatus)
  • Water Mint (mentha aquatica)
  • Brooklime (veronica beccabunga)
  • Purple Loosestrife (lythrum salicaria)
  • Lesser Pond Sedge (carex acutiformis)
  • Iris Reed Mace (typha)
  • Water Plantain (alisma)
  • Meadowsweet (filipendula ulmaria)
  • Reed Sweet-grass (glyceria maxima)
  • Bull Rush (scirpus lacustris)
  • Branched Bur Reed (sparganium erectum)
  • Water Speedwell (veronica scutellata)