Any one paying attention to the rivers in Sheffield the last couple of years will have noticed a gradual transformation as stretch by stretch of river bank has had years of vegatative growth cleared. In response to the severe floods of 2007, the Environment Agency has cut down riparian trees, cleared vegetation and dug out gravel shoals in the river channel, turning the green river corridor brown. The latest stretch to receive this treatment has been Malin Bridge downstream of the confluence of the Loxley and Rivelin (pictured). The logic behind this intervention is that by removing vegetation from the channel, it will not be swept into the river blocking bridges during high flow and therefore exacerbating flooding. Response from local people has been mixed. Some welcome the measures if they will protect against further flooding, and enjoy seeing the archaeological heritage that has been exposed. Others worry about the loss of habitat for nesting birds and spawning fish.   

URSULA PhD student Peggy Haughton has been following the work at Malin Bridge with interest. As part of her research she is trying to understand better what different kinds of outcomes different people wanted for the site, how these aspirations were considered in the decision making process, and what their feelings are about the site as it now exists, to see if there are ways that the processes of decision-making could better incorporate the huge variety of different ideas about the site.

To read more about this and other articles on URSULA research, please subscribe to receive the URSULA annual newsletter, of which the 2010 edition will be released shortly.

Not letting the freezing temperatures get between the URSULA researchers and a chance to enjoy Sheffield's urban rivers, the  research team headed to the Sheaf Valley for a festive walk along the River Sheaf Walk.  The Sheaf, the river from which Sheffield derives its name, is one of the major tributaries of the Don in the city. Its source starts in the Pennine moors south west of the city, flowing north east until its confluence with the Don in the heart of the city. We joined the river at Millhouses Park, originally farmland dotted with water mills, but now a large urban park in residential suburbs of the city. We followed the river downstream, which runs parallel to the Midland Mainline Railway line and Abbeydale Road, passing an increasingly urbanised landscape. Indeed, the urban pressure on the river visibly increases as you move downstream, changing  from a river bordered by trees, to a channelised river straight-jacketed in concrete, before finally disappearing totally under a culvert.

For those of you who love urban rivers as much as we do, you'll be happy to know you can view our second installment of photos from the second half of the walk at the lower reaches of the Sheaf nearing Sheffield City Centre, a chance to share in the sites of the walk. To browse these pictures click here for part 2, click here for part 1.

To see past photo collections follow the links below:

To view the Lower Don Valley pictures click here

To view the Loxley Valley pictures - click here

‘URSULA gets her hands dirty’ special – click here

3^rd set – click here

2^nd set - click here

1^st set - click here

As the URSULA project continues, we will add our most recent photos so keep on checking the website. If you would like to share a photo on the website please send an email to Ed Shaw. 

Not letting the freezing temperatures get between the URSULA researchers and a chance to enjoy Sheffield's urban rivers, the  research team headed to the Sheaf Valley for a festive walk along the River Sheaf Walk.  The Sheaf, the river from which Sheffield derives its name, is one of the major tributaries of the Don in the city. Its source starts in the Pennine moors south west of the city, flowing north east until its confluence with the Don in the heart of the city. We joined the river at Millhouses Park, originally farmland dotted with water mills, but now a large urban park in residential suburbs of the city. We followed the river downstream, which runs parallel to the Midland Mainline Railway line and Abbeydale Road, passing an increasingly urbanised landscape. Indeed, the pressures on the river visibly increase, going from being bordered by trees, to a channelised river straight-jacketed in concrete, and then to disappearing totally under culverts.

For those of you who love urban rivers as much as we do, you'll be happy to know you can view photos from the walk on the URSULA website, a chance to share in the sites of the walk. To browse these pictures click here. But stay tuned to the website, as this is just the first of a double bill of photos, the next instalment coming soon.

To see past photos follow the links below:

To view the Lower Don Valley pictures click here

To view the Loxley Valley pictures - click here

‘URSULA gets her hands dirty’ special – click here

3^rd set – click here

2^nd set - click here

1^st set - click here

As the URSULA project continues, we will add our most recent photos so keep on checking the website. If you would like to share a photo on the website please send an email to Ed Shaw. 

From time to time we collect together and upload a selection of photos we have taken as URSULA researchers that we think are interesting, charismatic, or simply visually attractive. Now the 5th set of photos is out, with the theme of the Lower Don Valley, north-east Sheffield. Traditionally, for much of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries the area has been the centre of much of Sheffield's steel industry, built along the sides of the Don as it flowed out of Sheffield. However in the 70s and 80s, the steel industry began to decline, which led to the closure of many steelworks. Today, the area is a hotchpotch of steelworks, brownfield sites, and modern developments. Meadowhall, a huge shopping centre has replaced the equally large East Hecla Steelworks which was demolished in the early eighties. 

At the same time as the decline in the steel industry, the water quality of the river has improved rapidly. The river has gone from being almost lifeless to recovering many fish species, so much so that the river is now popular with anglers. Along the sides of the river a mix of natural and invasive vegetation now grows, forming a lush green corridor through this part of the city. This forms the route of the Five Weirs Walk, river side access that has been created along this length of the river.

To view the Lower Don Valley pictures click here.  

To see past photos follow the links below:

4^th set - click here

‘URSULA gets her hands dirty’ special – click here

3^rd set – click here

2^nd set - click here

1^st set - click here

As the URSULA project continues, we will add our most recent photos so keep on checking the website. If you would like to share a photo on the website please send an email to Ed Shaw. 

URSULA aims to be an interdisciplinary project, and anybody who attended the 2nd Annual Conference would have a hard time arguing with that. Presentations covered a diverse range of topics including governance of river corridors, power at the policy-research interface, social network analysis, weir modification and eels, bird species to be found within Sheffield's river corridors, use of GIS to identify stormwater disconnections, and theory and practice of Bayesian Belief Networks and visualisation media. We also had a good helping of sustainable urban design topics, covering flood resilience, green roofs, urban microclimates and riverside access. The fact that these presentations are derived from current research results within URSULA reflects the fact that the problem of achieving sustainable development within urban river corridors is very complex and multifaceted, requiring expertise from a wide range of researchers. Without bringing these researchers together, the problem of achieving sustainable development cannot be answered, as many disciplines hold a small piece of the key to the solution. As this situation is common to many world problems, it is vital that holistic multidisciplinary thinking is taken up, not just in the context of urban river corridors, but across the board of policy development. It also makes for very interesting conferences. 

For URSULA partners keen for a second dose, you can download the presentations from the Member's Zone.