Repair works approved to prevent collapse of Kirkthorpe Weir
Plans to carry out repairs on a 200-year-old weir have been approved to prevent to the historic structure from collapsing.
Wakefield Council has given the green light to proposals to carry out strengthening works at the Grade II-listed Kirkthorpe Weir.
The structure, on the River Calder to the east of the city, helps to control the flow of water into the Aire and Calder Navigation.
A weir is a small barrier, or small-scale dam, built across a stream or river to raise the water level slightly on the upstream side.
Experts identified work required at the weir almost a decade ago but it has yet to be completed, according to document submitted to the local authority.
A hydropower plant was built next to the weir in 2016, which led to the sudden failure of its sluices.
A report by the Canal & River Trust requesting permission to carry out the work said it was “concerned about the stability of the weir.”
The document said: “The aim of the proposed works is to re-establish the structural integrity of Kirkthorpe weir and prevent future scouring issues.
“This intervention is of crucial importance to safeguard the Grade II-listed structure in the long term as structural failure is a potential imminent risk.”
The local authority previously granted permission for the repairs to go-ahead in 2022 but the work was not carried out.
Details of the planned work were included in a re-submitted application made after permission expired in June this year.
The weir, which was constructed in 1827 and granted listed status in 1986, maintains water levels at Stanley Ferry, Birkwood Lock and back up the river to Fall Ings Lock in Wakefield.
The council’s conservation officer said: “The weir has remained largely unchanged for the past 200 years and is a good example of functional and pioneering engineering of the day and tells us the story of the development of the Aire and Calder Navigation.”
A planning officer’s report said the work would result in “less than substantial harm” to the structure.
Approving the plan, the officer said: “Weight is afforded to the fact that the proposed works are necessary to ensure the long-term preservation of the structure and the public benefits of reducing the risk of structural failure, which outweigh such harm.”