Reservoir scour testing

A scour test involves slowly opening and closing the outlet valve, which causes the release of water into the stream. This is likely to cause increased turbulence and deterioration of water quality immediately downstream for the duration of the test and for a short while after.

On the day, tests generally commence between 7-10am and may last for up to 4 hours in total, with a release at full flow rate for about half an hour. If you might be affected by a particular test, please check a week beforehand as there is a small chance for test dates to be moved to a later date or for additional tests to be required.