SOME people spend a fortune on model boats just for fun but this hi-tech version can help to prevent flooding.

The ARC-Boat (Acoustic Remote Control) costs about £10,000 and 50 have now been made for the Environment Agency by water environment experts HR Wallingford.

The remote-control boats help EA staff to check river levels by collecting data and they can then issue quick and accurate flood warning information.

Data collected allows EA staff to monitor flows in the river which in turn helps flood teams assess what action is needed — including where flood defences need to be set up.News
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The ARC-Boats made by HR Wallingford at Howbery Business Park have also been supplied to customers in Canada, New Zealand, France, Azerbaijan and Ireland.

Nick Everard, a technical adviser in the agency’s hydrometry and telemetry team, used the boat to take readings from the Thames near Osney Bridge on Thursday.

He said: “I didn’t play with toy boats when I was a kid but I’m sure there are a lot of children who would love to have a go of this.

“There’s an acoustic device like a sonar which uses pulses of sound to measure how much water is flowing down the river, the depth of the water and the speed.

“There are already water level sensors at the locks and permanent flow gauges along the river but we can use the boats to check that the information we are getting is correct.

“At the moment there are 12 tonnes of water per second passing through the Thames but during times of flood it can be almost 10 times that much.

“Water levels have risen slightly during the past couple of weeks but levels are absolutely normal for this time of year.”

Mr Everard added that before the ARC-Boat was available, it would take four or five people a full day to survey just one site.

“Now it’s possible for two people to survey up to six sites in a day from the safety of the riverbank,” he added.

Environment Agency staff were involved in the development of the boats.

Keith Powell, HR Wallingford director, said: “The delivery of ARC-Boat number 50 is an important milestone for us.

“They are using the ARC-Boats to map more of our rivers, and in greater detail than was previously possible.

“The data they collect will improve the accuracy of flood warnings.

“We are pleased to be able to support this important work.”


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