We cover 2170 km2 across the boroughs of Allerdale and Copeland in Cumbria, a largely rural area containing the north and western areas of the Lake District National Park and the flat land south of the Solway estuary
We cover 2170 km2 across the boroughs of Allerdale and Copeland in Cumbria, a largely rural area containing the north and western areas of the Lake District National Park and the flat land south of the Solway estuary.
A catchment is the area of land draining into a river and its tributaries. We cover a large number of catchments, split into three areas:
- Waver and Wampool – The rivers Waver and Wampool flow north from the edge of the Lake District fells to the Solway estuary. These catchments are very flat and dominated by dairy and beef farming. Wigton is the main town in this area.
- Derwent and Ellen – The River Derwent has its source above Derwentwater in the central Lake District fells and the River Ellen rises in the northern fells. Both flow west to the Irish sea. The Derwent has a number of major tributaries including the Greta and Cocker and flows through Bassenthwaite Lake and the towns of Keswick, Cockermouth and Workington. It’s a ‘Special Area of Conservation’ due to being an important salmon river. The Ellen flows through the town of Maryport on the coast.
- West coast rivers – This area covers the west coast from Whitehaven in the north to Bootle in the south. Several short rivers flow west from the Lake District fells to the Irish sea, including the Rivers Ehen, Calder, Irt, Mite, Esk and This area includes Ennerdale water and Wastwater.
The map below summarises the characteristics of our catchments.