Holly Lane, Erdington

Project Overview

An existing 150m stream, partly overgrown and partly culverted, flows through a new housing development on a Brownfield site in the Midlands. Whilst maintaining water flow through the site, the clients brief was to create a pleasing ‘green’ space for flora and fauna to flourish and become part of an enjoyable environment for the new residents. Importantly, the solution needed to be viable and buildable within the available space. In this case, Brownfield means a 13-acre site formerly used as a quarry, brickworks and for landfill, so the solution had to prevent possible contaminants entering the watercourse.

Solution

Platipus partner, Geosynthetics Ltd, designed a bespoke solution, expertly using a wide range of products. Firstly, the channel side slopes were stabilised by a combination of Platipus ‘Percussion Driven Earth Anchors’ and a Geogrid to spread the load. Anchors for both Northern and Southern slopes were driven from the north. To prevent ingress of contaminants from the main site, an impermeable membrane, layered above and below with a protective geotextile, was overlain. Green finishes were encouraged using a 150mm thick, three-dimensional cellular confinement system, to hold topsoil and to facilitate vegetation. Erosion control matting was applied to prevent soil erosion while the vegetation established itself. Finally, the base of the channel was lined with river washed gravels.