Tarbert park flooding petition calls for action now

The regular flooding prevents children and other residents from accessing the football pitch, the Astro turf, and the play park.

“The Tarbert Soccer Centre is now forced to hire a pitch 14 miles away for home matches,” Sharon explained. “The park is also used by Tarbert Primary School for PE, extracurricular activities, and after-school clubs, all of which are being disrupted.

“Tarbert has a women’s football team that is also affected by the flooding and being unable to gain access to train weekly.”

The petition’s signatories are concerned not only by the significant drop in leisure facilities in the village but also by safety issues when flooding forces the closure of safe walking routes.

“Tarbert after school club uses the park path as a safe access route to go to their premise at the village hall; when it is flooded this is not possible,” Sharon explained.

“Flooding regularly blocks the M1 path, a vital safe route used by children walking to school and by residents from the Big Valley, forcing them onto the main road.”

The petition calls for the council to take immediate action by allocating resources towards a comprehensive flood management and park restoration project.

“The time to act is now; we must safeguard Tarbert park for future generations,” it states.

The pressing issue has also been raised by the area’s councillor Anne Horn, who is organising a public meeting with fellow councillors, local residents and representatives from the council.

In September last year Councillor Horn contacted policy lead for roads, transport and amenity services Councillor John Armour and senior officers in that department asking for urgent action and a solution.

"Tarbert football park is an essential part of the community and used by a large number of groups and organisations," she told the Advertiser this week.

"It is essential that the flooding at the playing fields is addressed without further delay. The pitch has been out of use for six months and our young people are having to play home football games at other pitches, sometimes travelling for hours when they game should be here in Tarbert.

"The path ( known as the M1 ) has been impassable much of the time as the problem lies at the burn that runs down by the playing field. This causes real inconvenience as the alternative access from east and west of the village is the footpath alongside the A83, a narrow pavement which is often affected by flooding from drains.

"One of the priorities for Argyll and Bute Council is that our children and young people will have the best start in life. We are not improving health in our young people when access to sport is so restricted in the village. Access to the community changing rooms is restricted by the flooding and difficult to access for equipment that requires to be taken to football games.

"The flooding issues have worsened and now affect homes in Kingsway where residents on occasion cannot access or exit their homes as the paths are deep in water."

However, villagers claim the council has so far been unwilling to undertake the work required to remedy the situation.

“The path from Oakhill and Oakfield is unpassable when the park is flooded,” Sharon told the Advertiser.

“A huge part of our community live there and they have to walk down the main road to access the village at these times. 

“At the bottom of Oakhill, there used to be a large boggy area.  This acted as a natural reservoir for rainwater when there was heavy rain. In order to build the new houses, this bog was filled in with tonnes and tonnes of stone to raise the level to that of the road. Since this has happened the water is breaking its banks regularly.

“This has been highlighted to the council, but they appear to be hesitant to undertake works.  A local person did use their own digger and voluntarily dredged a section of the burn nearest to the road. This has helped that section immensely, but the rest of the burn needs to have this done urgently.”

Due to the water not draining through all of the summer last year, the park was unable to be cut or lined.  The excessive flooding has caused a huge dip in the field making it now completely unplayable.

On Sunday, prior to the 2013 team playing their home game to Campbeltown at Lochgilphead Joint campus Astro, the team coach and secretary had to wade through the water to access the team’s first aid kit and balls.

An Argyll and Bute spokesperson said: “We would love to do all our communities ask of us, but year on year funding reductions mean we cannot. Work has progressed in Tarbert within the resources we have available.

“The water pump has been repaired and is functioning. Rainfall this weekend was particularly severe. Later this month, SSE will put in a new power supply which will be separate from that of the pavilion.

"We have investigated all the associated drainage in the area. The immediate scrub and growth issues around one of the burns has been cleared with community support. Work is planned for the filter drain around the pump chamber and along the side of the burn.

"Any further work will be undertaken as and when staff are available, but key service delivery such as waste collection, funerals, winter maintenance and storm clear-ups, will always have to take priority.”