The Daily Telegraph - 06.08.2019

(C. Jardin) #1

The Daily Telegraph Tuesday 6 August 2019 *** 7


Lowering level of


Whaley Bridge


reservoir ‘could


flood villages’


By Phoebe Southworth
and Bill Gardner


ATTEMPTS to drain the Whaley Bridge
reservoir by pumping water into the
nearby river could risk flooding down-
stream, residents have been warned.
Fire crews are using huge hoses to
pump 7,000 litres of water a minute
from Toddbrook Reservoir in an effort
to take pressure off the dam which par-
tially collapsed on Thursday.
Villagers told The Daily Telegraph
that the Armed Forces and firefighters
warned them that their properties
could now be at greater risk from the
swollen Goyt river.
Katie Jackson, 32, who lives in the
village of Strines with her partner and
three children, said: “They’ve warned
us that pumping water into the Goyt
could increase the river level even
more.” A resident called Ann, 50, said:
“This is the penalty of living in this
area.” Fighting back tears, she added:
“It’s the thought of leaving and not be-
ing able to get back.”
The Environment Agency is moni-
toring river levels and said residents
should not be unduly concerned by the
extra volume of water from the quickly-
draining reservoir.
Downstream from the town of Wha-
ley Bridge, residents have piled up
sandbags at their doors and been told
they will have just 10 minutes to evacu-
ate if the dam gives way. Towns at risk
include Marple and New Mills, with
populations of 23,000 and 10,000, and
the village of Furness Vale which is
home to around 1,500 people.
Greater Manchester Police con-
firmed its officers, along with the fire
service and Army, had been delivering
factsheets containing flood safety mes-
sages to residents in Marple.
The Canal & River Trust said the dis-
charge into the Goyt would “of course
increase flows” but “not present the
same level of risks” as the dam’s failure.
Ben Lukey, the Environment Agen-
cy’s duty flood manager, insisted teams
had been modelling the amount of ex-
tra water going into the river.
“We are confident that pumping out
of Toddbrook Reservoir is being man-
aged in such a way to ensure that there
is no increase in flood risk for commu-
nities further downstream along the
river Goyt,” he said.
More than 1,500 people of Whaley
Bridge’s 6,500 population who have
left their homes have now spent four
nights away as emergency workers bat-


AFP/GETTY IMAGES

McDonald’s ‘green’


straws go in the bin


By Henry Bodkin
and Helena Horton


PAPER straws cannot al-
ways be recycled, it has
emerged, after McDonald’s
admitted its “100 per cent
recyclable” straws were dis-
posed of in general waste.
The fast food giant
switched from plastic straws



  • which were recyclable – to
    paper ones last year as part
    of a campaign to burnish
    the company’s green cre-
    dentials.
    But a leaked internal
    memo revealed the straws
    were being burned.
    “When McDonald’s intro-
    duced paper straws it was
    getting pats on the back,” an
    insider told The Sun.
    “But it seems it was a stunt
    to appease green campaign-
    ers because the things go


straight in the rubbish.” The
new straws were criticised
by customers who found it
harder to drink milkshakes.
Before the change, McDon-
ald’s used 1.8 million plastic
straws a day in the UK.
It said its plastic straws
were “100 per cent recycla-
ble” but changed to paper to
help the environment.
Sir Ed Davey, former cli-
mate change secretary, said:
“It really can’t be difficult to
replace plastic straws.”
The leaked memo said:
“Paper straws are not yet re-
cyclable and should be dis-
posed of in general waste.”
McDonald’s said: “Their
thickness makes it difficult
for them to be processed.
We’re working to find a solu-
tion.”

Editorial Comment: Page 15

By Victoria Ward


THE demise of the tradi-
tional weekly shop has
prompted the closure of 153
Tesco Metro stores, leading
to the loss of 4,500 jobs.
The supermarket said it
was “simplifying” how it
runs its smaller Metro stores,
better tailoring them to how
customers shop today.
The format was originally
designed for larger, weekly
shops, but nearly 70 per cent
of customers now use them
as convenience stores, regu-


larly nipping in to buy food
for that day. Two thirds of
Britons now visit a super-
market more than once a
day, and one in 10 people de-
cide what to buy for an even-
ing meal just before they eat
it, according to the Waitrose
Food and Drink Report 2017.
Tesco said it had found
faster and simpler ways of
filling shelves, with fewer
products stored in back
rooms and more stock going
straight to the shop floor.

Business: Page 27

Tesco cuts 4,500 jobs as


weekly shop is shelved


News


An inspection is
carried out on the
damaged spillway
at the Toddbrook
Reservoir, near the
Derbyshire town of
Whaley Bridge
yesterday. Below, a
soldier helps clear a
stream of debris to
improve the flow

‘They’ve


warned us
that
pumping

water into
the Goyt
could

increase the
river level

even more.
It’s a case of
wait and see’

tle to get the reservoir’s capacity to
drop to what is considered a safe level
of 25 per cent.
But 22 adults from 16 homes near the
reservoir have refused to abandon
their properties. Rachel Swann, Dep-
uty Chief Constable of Derbyshire Con-
stabulary, admitted that police had no
powers to force them to evacuate.
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn vis-
ited Whaley Bridge yesterday.
He praised the “incredible spirit” of
the community, and called for an in-
quiry into what caused the dam to
break, adding: “Hopefully people will
be able to return to their homes, but
there has to be then the question of
long-term repair to the dam, and the
safety of it in the future.”
The Government has said that it is
considering a national review into the
structural safety of dams throughout
the country.

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