Dear Aldbury/Tring Station Residents

Re: Aldbury Pond restoration 2023

As you may know already the Parish Council has given the go-ahead to much needed plans to restore the village pond – and make it easier to keep it that way. Work will take place in three stages; the clearing, reprofiling and then relining of the pond. The project is relatively complex and the final phase requires a respite from the rain, which means the timetable has to maintain a degree of flexibility.

PHASE 1

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR WEED CLEARING. Phase 1 will be commencing with immediate effect and will see the pond cleared of all the vegetation, including the roots. We need the site completely cleared of vegetation by 16th August and we are looking for volunteers for help. You will be welcome to come at any time that suits, and for as long or short a time as you can afford. Please bring your own spade or fork and pile up the vegetation you dig out on the grass on the bus stop side of the pond. From there it will be collected for disposal. Please ensure there are no stones/flints amongst the roots that may damage the shredder the plants will be fed through.

PHASE 2

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED AS TRAFFIC MARSHALS. The second phase will commence on 18 August with the erection of temporary fencing around the pond. This is to prepare for the arrival of a mechanical digger that will be used to excavate the accumulated silt and underlying substrate to create a re-modelled pond bed that is somewhat deeper than it is today. The work will be carried out by an experienced volunteer from the Wendover Canal Trust from Saturday 19 August until Monday 21 August. The spoil will be piled up on the grass verges to the pond from where it will be collected by grab lorries. This will take place between Monday 21 August and Wednesday 23 August, with Thursday as a potential overrun day. The route the lorries will take will be via Station Road and Cow lane.

There will inevitably be a degree of noise and disturbance during this phase of the project, but the excavation work will be confined to between 9am and 6pm to minimise disturbance to those households adjacent to the pond. The grab lorries transporting the spoil will need to make an earlier start because of the opening hours at the disposal depot. They may start to arrive from 7am or thereabouts, rather like the refuse collection service. Because of the route of the lorries, both Aldbury and Tring Station residents will be impacted by the heavy vehicle traffic.

PHASE 3

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR A WIDE RANGE OF TASKS. This is the stage at which the pond will be relined. We anticipate undertaking this phase between Saturday 26 August and Wednesday 30 August. We might even wish to make an earlier start with installing the liner (e.g. on 25 August) if the weather forecast indicates a dry spell we wish to take advantage of and there are sufficient volunteers with availability.

A puncture proof fabric will be laid down across the pond, followed by the geotextile liner itself. This in turn will be covered with concrete that will have to be spread and compacted down. Concrete block baffles will be built in the areas immediately beneath the pond’s two inlet pipes to help trap incoming

silt into areas where it can more readily be removed in the future. There will be heavy lorries coming and going with cement towards the latter part of this phase (most likely, 29 and 30 August).

For this work we will need lots of volunteers to: 

•  lay down the puncture-proof fabric and geotextile liner.

• spread and compact the concrete overlay

• build the concrete block baffles

• marshal traffic

• assist the project manager with coordination of volunteers

• be available as a first-aider

• keep a record of who is on-site (for health and safety purposes).

Clearly, this is a stage at which we need the most volunteers willing to take on one or other of the various tasks involved. So please come forward to assist. You can do so by emailing aldburypond@aldburyparish.org.uk.

SPECIAL REQUEST TO HOUSEHOLDS AND BUSINESSES (SHOP & PUB) IN THE VICINITY THE POND

We hope you will bear with us thorough the noise and disruption of the works. We will try to keep this to a minimum.

Please avoid parking around or in the vicinity of the pond between 9am and 6pm on the following dates: 19-23 August; 26- 30 August. During this time we will be grateful if you, or your customers, will use the recreation ground car park.

If you have any queries either now or during the works, please contact Ted Bianco by text (preferred) or voice to 07860 779058. Kindly do not leave voicemail messages.

Aldbury Pond Restoration Group.