The History of Matfield Pond

 

Matfield Pond, which covers an area of 0.25 hectares/0.6 acres, has a very long history, we just don’t know how long.  It is unclear exactly when it was dug but memories of some older residents includes that it was used as a watering place for horses or sheep being driven through the parish, as a place where military vehicles could be washed off during the war and to provide a source of water for the Fire Engine to fill up (you can still see the Victorian Fire House in the middle of the row of houses overlooking the pond), so it was certainly in a sensible position. It seems likely that all these ideas are possible. It certainly had a puddled clay liner many decades ago.

Matfield Pond circa 1920s

Matfield Pond 1964 (courtesy of Roland and Jill Niblet)

It does not appear that fish were ever added to the pond in a formal way, they have just appeared over the years, fairground goldfish, fish dropped by herons, the odd un-noticed bucket of fish that had out-grown garden ponds and no one really considered this a problem, sadly this proved to be untrue.  Many generations of local children fished the pond, and caught some reasonably large fish, it was all very informal and a typical village image.  A project was undertaken in 2019, with an amphibious digger deployed to remove a large amount of bogbean which was covering a large section of the pond.

Amphibious digger, Summer 2019

Over the years many groups of Councillors have attempted to address the problems caused by the shallow nature of the pond, mainly that in the years when there is extreme hot weather the pond dries up, resulting in not only an unpleasant look but also the loss of wildlife, mainly of course the fish.  Adding water to the pond has always been a problem, there is a small road run off drain and, until recently, a rather ineffective and expensive “garden” tap and, and with the Fire Brigade advising that they cannot fill the pond  from their appliance in an emergency (to save the fish) the sustainability of the habitat has always been of concern.

 

Matfield Pond drought summer 2021

This bought some time whilst various investigations, including considerations of digging a borehole in the Green, were done seeking a longer term solution.  This culminated in late 2022 when a specialist from the Angling Trust, whilst netting the fish to reduce the numbers, identified the presence of an invasive species, Prussian Carp, which required notification to the Environment Agency, early in 2023. Prussian carp breed uncontrollably, including hybridising with other fish, and prevent the healthy environment for native species. This was an unexpected, and very unwelcome, situation necessitating a considerable amount of expertise and money to be sought, things couldn’t go on as they had.

A Prussian Carp, December 2022

This small fish, of which there were thousands in Matfield Pond, is not a native species and must have been put in the pond by someone, probably not realising the consequences. The EA, after taking samples for laboratory testing, issued the Parish Council with an enforcement notice to eradicate all fish from the pond.  This was a devastating outcome but the Council was not daunted, because fortunately for the residents and the Parish Council, a local fishing lake owner, Richard Groves, stepped forwards to offer his help, this led to….

 

Matfield Pond Project Summer 2023

With the realisation that a major, and potentially expensive, project would be required as a matter of urgency, the Council and Richard quickly put together a scheme designed to comply with the EA requirements but also to think of the long term future of the pond.  This was discussed at several Parish Council meetings, with many suggestions considered and eventually a clear path was agreed.

Removing the Fish and draining the pond

The first thing that was required was to empty the pond completely, no mean feat with such a huge amount of water. Believe it or not the overflow pipe runs under the main road, turns a sharp right through the gardens of the houses on the opposite side of the road and eventually empties into a ditch approximately 300m down the side of the field behind the houses… a fact not widely known by anyone except the farmer!. This pipe system was cleared by the Parish and County Councils in 2019 and is useable, albeit only for a trickle of water, emptying of the entire pond was never anticipated but with the use of some overland pipe, the system held up to the challenge.

Removing the fish was not a pleasant task, and was supervised by the Environment Agency throughout.  Over a ton of fish was removed, sadly this included the non-Prussian Carp varieties too although the previous netting demonstrated that there were only a small number, probably less than 30, larger non-invasive fish, mainly carp.  The EA removed a number of specimens to test at their laboratory, it seems Matfield Pond was one of a very small number of identified locations of Prussian Carp and the EA was keen to understand how this fish hybridised with native species, our pond has in this very small way contributed therefore to the protection of ponds throughout the country.

At the end of that process, and despite the whole of the pond having been emptied, the EA enforced the further action of spreading the whole of the pond with hydrated lime, which would not harm the ducks or other wildlife but would eradicate all remaining fish, and then leave the pond empty for a minimum of 3 weeks.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Silt, drainage and walls

Over 120 tons of silt were moved to the sides of the pond, covering over some vegetation to reduce the spread of the bogbean in particular, and resulting in an increase in the depth of the pond by a considerable amount in some areas, without damaging the clay liner which prevents the pond losing water that way.  Repairs to the main retaining wall by the roadside were also undertaken, this was also a place where water was being lost.  The addition of a French drain, running a distance of 15m from where a dip in the land created a pool of water in wet weather, has also maximised the amount of water going into the pond.

Before and after vegetation moved and the small island cleared

New planting and habitat

On completion of the required work the EA issued the Parish Council with a compliance certificate so that we could move on towards re-establishing the wildlife habitats and ensuring the sustainability of the pond in the longer term, this was the fun part for everyone, especially Richard and his workforce, who had a vision for the pond that was hard to see early in the project when there was mud everywhere!. The small island was cleared, a fallen tree removed and the corner by Hammonds Butchers was covered, there is a little more to do on this area, when the silt has settled to a level.

150 metres of new reeds were planted in swathes around the edges and the small island to help in to give cover for animals and to knit into the banks so that the silt stays in place.  We have also planted groups of yellow iris, pontederia and yellow and white lilies, held down by engineering bricks so that they stay in place and all the banks have been seeded with grass and wildflower seeds.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dye

With the general digging up and moving of silt of course the water has become muddy and genereally not as healthy as the fish in particular would like, in order for them to thrive.  Therefore a natural dye has been put in which is free from herbicides, pesticides and algaecides and this will prevent an excess of nitrogen which if unchecked can result in an algal bloom where algae reproduce in record numbers. Algal blooms are known to be harmful to other pond life, both other plants and fish so putting in the dye means the pond will be a wildlife-friendly natural looking pond, this will form part of the annual maintenance programme as well as an annual application of a silt inhibitor.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There was considerable interest and publicity surrounding the project with articles on Kent Online and in November 20232 Cllr Jonathan Buttery, Chair of the Parish Council, and Richard Groves, the person who made most of this happen and the Pond Guardian, were both interviewed on ITV’s South East Today, further establishing Matfield Pond as one of the iconic images of our parish.

 

 

Fish and Fishing Rights

The Parish Council decided to re-stock the pond with native species, roach, rudd, tench and perch and in January 2024 applied for registration as a fishery to enable this to go ahead, it was decided that pike would not be added and it is hoped that residents will not put in unwanted fish from ponds which could create overcrowding and contaminate the stock.  Much thought was put into the number of fish, just enough so that they would not suffer from repeated catching but not so many that the pond would become over-crowded.  The number and health of the fish will be monitored as part of the annual programme.

Remote-controlled boats, swimming, and paddling/wading are not permitted, to ensure safety and to protect the health of the fish and wildlife.

Matfield Pond is solely for the use and enjoyment of children aged 16 and under living in the civil parish of Brenchley and Matfield.

Adults may accompany children, for safety reasons, however only children aged 16 and under may fish and this will be strictly enforced

All fish must be returned to the pond.

When EA enforcement officers are carrying out rod licence checks they will ask anyone over the age of 13 years old to produce a licence which are free for 13-16 year olds. Further information can be found here:

https://www.gov.uk/fishing-licences

A Parish Council appointed Pond Guardian (Richard Groves) will be patrolling the area regularly, please comply with the above rule and help the Council to maintain the health of the pond.

Feeding Ducks

It is a not well known fact but ducks shouldn’t be fed bread as this can be harmful to their overall health, it also affects the water quality generally food that is healthy for ducks includes sweetcorn, peas, oats, cooked rice and seeds.   But for many families feeding the ducks is the main reason to come to the pond (for others its fishing) and Craig Hammond kindly agreed to stock small (paper) bags of floating fish food, proceeds from the sale of this go towards the Christmas Lights which run alongside the pond – thank you Hammonds.