Reminder for landowners responsible for ditches and watercourses

Someone who owns property which is next to a watercourse or has a watercourse running through it, is called a ‘riparian landowner’.  Legally, riparian landowners have certain rights and responsibilities relating to the stretch of watercourse that flows through or alongside their land. It is not only farmers who are riparian owners. 

Homeowners may not realise that the ditch at the bottom of their garden belongs to them and that they may be responsible for its maintenance. 

The legal responsibilities to help manage flood risk and protect the environment include: 

1. To maintain the watercourse and to clear any obstructions (natural or otherwise) so the optimum flow of water is not impeded. 

2. To maintain the banks and bed of the watercourse (including any trees and shrubs growing on the banks) and any flood defences that exists on it. 

3. To accept the natural flow from your upstream neighbour and transfer it downstream without obstruction, pollution or diversion. 

4. To maintain any approved structures on your stretch of the watercourse. 

For further information please read about riparian responsibilities in the Flood Guide: What are the responsibilities of a riparian owner? | Gloucestershire County Council