This gauging station is operated by the Environment Agency to assess how much water will reach the major towns many miles away. Not far upstream in an old mine working, Lanshaw Level, where water is collected for drinking purposes by Yorkshire Water. The mine tunnel is just off the horizontal to drain the mines above.
Here is a letter from local paper, Craven Herald in 2007.
"NO LONGER NEEDED
SIR - I read with particular interest David Joy's article (Craven Herald February 23) on the signs and protection works associated with the River Gauging Station on Hebden Beck.
My connection with the gauging station goes back to 1965 when I joined the Craven Water Board as the senior engineer responsible for new-works development. At that time, the Craven Water Board was planning to develop a new local supply using water abstracted from the mine workings at Lanshaw Level, which is just upstream of where the gauging station is now located; and the river authority needed more hydraulic data in order to justify the issuing of an abstraction licence to the board.
To satisfy this need, the Craven Water Board constructed the gauging station which comprised an innovative Flat Vee Crump weir and its associated level recording equipment. One of my personal involvements at this stage was setting out the level of the stainless steel crest capping, before it was concreted in.
The actual water supply works did eventually proceed during the late 1960s, and included a softening and basic water treatment works, and a new covered service reservoir near Hole Bottom.
However, following reorganisation of the water industry, and the resulting rationalisation of water supplies throughout the Yorkshire Water area, many smaller uneconomical sources, such as the one in Hebden Ghyll were abandoned.
The original need and justification for the gauging station on Hebden Beck, appears therefore, not to exist anymore. So why is it still operating? Unless, the Environmental Agency requires it just for academic purposes?
If the gauging station site is to be kept safe without signs, why not decommission it, and reinstate the beck and the surrounding area, JRM Crossley, jrmcrossley-at-uwclub.net"
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Parking in Hebden village and walk up tarmac track. No parking at Hole Bottom cottages.
Streetmap (
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OSGB SE024642
Nearest Post Code BD23 5DL