A PIONEERING natural flood defence scheme has been launched on the Quantocks.

The work to slow the flow of water from the Quantock Hills down to the Somerset Levels is being funded by Somerset Rivers Authority (SRA).

The project is partly a reaction to three unusually intense, localised storms that raged near to West Bagborough and over Aisholt Common and Great Wood last May.

Around 1,200 tonnes of soil and gravel were washed down gullies, blocking roads and culverts which it then took weeks to clear.

Now 15 woody dams are being created along four gullies, and sections of silver birch trunk laid down in gullies, to hold back water and debris on Aisholt Common.

Silver birch branches are also being woven into barriers that follow the contours of the land.