Balfour Beatty has joined with its customer, the Environment Agency, to mark the completion of the Lower Dove flood prevention scheme, which has reduced the risk of flooding to 1,600 residential and major commercial properties in South Derbyshire.

Construction of the £8.7m scheme began in September 2012 and consists of around 5km of new and improved flood defences on the border of Staffordshire and Derbyshire. In addition, existing defences along the Foston Brook in Scropton were raised and local defences against the River Dove in Hatton, Scropton and Egginton have been extended.

Balfour Beatty has a long history and extensive experience of designing and constructing flood prevention schemes and is currently carrying out other flood and coastal protection schemes for the Environment Agency in Warrington, Northumberland and Grimsby.

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A key innovation on the project was the use of global positioning devices in the cabs of all mobile plant vehicles which could be monitored by the project team, enabling them to plan and guide vehicles with complete accuracy and eliminate the need for workers to be situated on the ground to guide them.

The Balfour Beatty project team engaged with the local community on the project with presentations to local stakeholder groups, including pupils at the Heathfield School in Hatton, covering the potential dangers of construction sites and the importance of flood prevention work in the local area.

Stephen Semple, Balfour Beatty Delivery Unit Managing Director, said: "It's great to know that the work we have carried out is now protecting people’s homes and livelihoods in South Derbyshire. I am especially pleased that we were able to engage so closely with the local community during the delivery of this vital scheme."

(CD/JP)