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Planning Advice Note PAN 69
Planning and Building Standards Advice on Flooding
CASE STUDY 1
INSH MARSHES, NEAR KINGUSSIE: Functional flood plain
The River Spey is a high-altitude, slow-flowing river to the west of the Cairngorm Mountains. When the river is in spate, following heavy rain or snow melt, Insh Marshes acts as a flood storage area for the excess flow until water gradually passes through the narrow section of river downstream of Loch Insh and flood levels subside.
The entire floodplain extends from Kingussie downstream to the Spey/Feshie confluence near Kincraig Bridge. It includes the largest poor fen floodplain in Great Britain, over 8km long and nearly 3km wide in places. Approximately half of the floodplain is managed as a reserve by the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds. During the summer months, local farmers use the reserve for grazing, which prevents willows from spreading across the wetland, and instead provides the right conditions for a diverse range of plant and animal life. During winter and spring, the Insh Marshes floodplain regularly floods, and provides some flood defence benefits to Aviemore and other settlements and farmland downstream in the Badenoch and Strathspey area. However, severe weather events in the nineties led to major flooding in Kingussie, Aviemore and on agricultural land.
As well as cost-effective flood management, the functioning floodplain plays an important role in the scenery and environmental quality of Strathspey and contributes to tourism and the local economy. The wetlands provide an important habitat for wildlife and many bird species.
Insh Marshes floodplain storing flood water (Photograph © John MacPherson/SNH)
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