Wikipedia

Skelton Beck

Skelton Beck is a small river in North Yorkshire, England. The beck only runs for 23 kilometres (14 mi) and feeds directly into the North Sea on the south side of Saltburn beach. The beck is noted for occasionally being polluted with wastewater from the abandoned ironstone workings in its headwaters.

Skelton Beck
A small river flowing across a beach into the sea
Skelton Beck flows onto the Beach at Saltburn
Relief map of North Yorkshire
Relief map of North Yorkshire
Location within North Yorkshire
Physical characteristics
Source 
 • locationTocketts Mill
 • coordinates54°33′11″N 1°01′23″W / 54.553°N 1.023°W / 54.553; -1.023
 • elevation57 metres (187 ft)
Mouth 
 • location
Saltburn
 • coordinates
54°35′06″N 0°58′01″W / 54.585°N 0.967°W / 54.585; -0.967
 • elevation
5 metres (16 ft)
Length23.57 kilometres (14.65 mi)
Basin size54.11 square kilometres (20.89 sq mi)
Basin features
EA waterbody IDGB103025071970

Course

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From Skelton Mill to the beach at Saltburn, the beck runs through a deep ravine which averages a depth of 150 feet (46 m) and a width sometimes as narrow as 100 yards (91 m).[1] It generally follows a north-easterly direction, rising as several smaller streams between Eston and Guisborough.[2][3] Several modifications have been carried out on the beck including a weir near Upleatham to power a mill, and a small dam was built on the beck at Saltburn to create a pond and water for Valley Gardens in the town.[4][5]

In its lower reaches, the gorge that the beck flows through just before it crosses onto Saltburn beach is known as Saltburn Valley.[6]

Name

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The beck is named after the village of Skelton, one of the locations that it flows through. The name Skelton derives from most likely from an Old Norse word Skjellaen, meaning clatter or splash. This could mean that although Skelton is named in 1086, the river name could be the origin of the village name, with the beck first being documented in 1407.[7] Upstream, the beck carries several names such as Tocketts Beck, Howl Beck, and Skelton Ellers Beck.[8]

Hydrology and pollution

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The beck runs for 23.57 kilometres (14.65 mi) and drains an area of 54.11 square kilometres (20.89 sq mi). It is listed as having poor ecological status due to the minewater pollution from the former ironstone workings in the area.[9][10]

The beck has suffered several pollution incidents:

  • In 1890, several incidents of pollution from Brotton Beck, resulted in a move to have the tidal portion of the beck declared a stream under the River Pollution Prevention Act of 1876. This would enforce the polluters to deal with the pollution.[11]
  • In June 2009, at least 1,000 fish died when pollution from waste paints and solvents seeped into the beck near Saltburn.[12]
  • In March 2012, pig slurry leaked into the beck between Guisborough and Saltburn.[13]
  • In February 2022, whilst work was being undertaken on Cat Nab car park at the mouth of the beck, a sewage pipe was breached and this leaked out into the beck and also then onto the beach at Saltburn.[14]

The beck's lower reaches also suffers from tributaries bringing ironstone waste from abandoned mines into Skelton Beck. Concerns have been raised locally at Saltburn as to the bathing water quality on the beach because of this pollution.[15] The water in Saltburn Gill does not support any marine life due to the pollution, and it is estimated that 100 tonnes (110 tons) of dissolved iron ore is discharged on Saltburn beach each year.[16]

To combat this, the Coal Authority installed a water treatment plant on Saltburn Gill consisting of two lagoons which allows the iron to precipitate and sink to the bottom of the lagoons before the water flows out into the stream.[17]

Wildlife

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The beck is noted for being one a handful in Yorkshire that supports a sea trout and a salmon population for breeding. This is governed by and Environment Agency catch and release policy which requires all types to be released when caught.[18] Whilst the beck has had a natural population of sea trout, up to 84,000 were released into the beck in 2015 to replenish stocks after a mass pollution incident in 2012.[19]

Industry

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Skelton Beck historically supported three corn mills, one at Tocketts, one at Skelton, and one at Marske.[20] The mill at Skelton was also used to grind bone and to generate electricity. Both Tocketts and Skelton are listed with Historic England (grade II* and grade II respectively), and Tocketts Mill has been restored to working order and still produces flour.[21][22][23] Skelton Mill, which was first mentioned in 1272, was partially destroyed by bombing during the Second World War, and was also partially demolished for road improvements in the 1960s.[24][25] The beck also had smaller mills at Howl Beck, West Mill, and Swathey Head.[26]

Ironstone workings were found along either side of the beck, particularly Longacres Pit, which was built almost on top of the water. This has had a stark effect on the water quality, even long after the mines all closed.[27]

References

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  1. ^ "Stray notes on Cleveland". The Northern Echo. No. 93. Column C. 20 April 1870. p. 2. OCLC 506484752.
  2. ^ Philips, John (1853). The rivers, mountains, and sea-coast of Yorkshire. London: J. Murray. p. 142. OCLC 1084519889.
  3. ^ Cowper Reed, F. R. (1900). The geological history of the rivers of East Yorkshire. London: Clay & Sons. p. 42. OCLC 11368522.
  4. ^ "Skelton-in-Cleveland in history". skeltonincleveland.com. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
  5. ^ Historic England. "Valley Gardens, Saltburn (Grade II) (1001429)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
  6. ^ "Saltburn Valley". woodlandtrust.org.uk. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
  7. ^ Smith, A. H. (1979) [1928]. The Place Names of the North Riding of Yorkshire. English Place Name Society. pp. 16, 17, 147. OCLC 19714705.
  8. ^ "Howl Beck, Guisborough Angling Club" (PDF). wildtrout.org. p. 3. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
  9. ^ "Skelton Beck Catch (Saltburn) trib of North Sea | Catchment Data Explorer | Catchment Data Explorer". environment.data.gov.uk. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
  10. ^ Rahman, Pattanathu K. S. M.; Bastola, Suvechhya (17 June 2014). "Biological reduction of iron to the elemental state from ochre deposits of Skelton Beck in Northeast England". Frontiers in Environmental Science. 2: 1. doi:10.3389/fenvs.2014.00022.
  11. ^ "The pollution of Saltburn Beck". The North-Eastern Daily Gazette. Column C. 7 January 1891. p. 3. OCLC 749266990.
  12. ^ "Dumped waste leads to fish deaths". BBC News. 2 June 2009. Retrieved 26 May 2023.
  13. ^ "Thousands of trout released into Skelton Beck". BBC News. 18 July 2015. Retrieved 26 May 2023.
  14. ^ Mitchinson, James, ed. (25 February 2022). "Repairs as sewer pipe spills waste". The Yorkshire Post. p. 9. ISSN 0963-1496.
  15. ^ "Seaside town blighted by legacy of ironstone mining". The Northern Echo. 8 October 2005. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
  16. ^ "Closing in on Cleveland's Red River problem | Media centre | Teesside University". tees.ac.uk. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
  17. ^ "Saltburn Gill mine water treatment scheme". GOV.UK. 8 September 2017. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
  18. ^ "National Salmon and Sea Trout Protection Byelaws - Environment Agency - Citizen Space". consult.environment-agency.gov.uk. Retrieved 5 August 2023.
  19. ^ "Sea trout returned to beck". The Gazette. No. 45, 323. 24 July 2015. p. 9. ISSN 2056-6131.
  20. ^ "Showing results for ( River equals Skelton Beck )". new.millsarchive.org. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  21. ^ Historic England. "Tocketts Mill (Grade II*) (1329554)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  22. ^ Historic England. "Skelton Mill Farmhouse and Remains of Mill (Grade II) (1251324)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  23. ^ "Water Mill". tockettsmillcountrypark.co.uk. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  24. ^ Page, William, ed. (1968). The Victoria history of the county of York, North Riding. London: Dawsons of Pall Mall for the University of London Institute of Historical Research. p. 406. ISBN 0712903100.
  25. ^ "Hidden Teesside - Skelton Mill". hidden-teesside.co.uk. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  26. ^ "Tocketts; The story of a North Yorkshire township and its mill – The Mills Archive". new.millsarchive.org. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
  27. ^ "Longacres Pit – Skelton Beck". teessidepsychogeography.wordpress.com. Retrieved 6 August 2023.
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