PLANS to decommission the former Jacks Key reservoir in Darwen have been cautiously welcomed.

Will Straw, who is the Labour party candidate for the town in the upcoming general election, said he thought the proposals from the Environment Agency were good for the site, but expressed worries over flood defences.

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The area around Jacks Key has long been empty for some years, with the water being drained from the reservoir a some years ago. The land itself now belongs to the Queen’s estate.

Mr Straw said: “We must be absolutely clear that the changes to the natural environment and the proposed changes to flood defences have been taken for the right reasons, not purely as a cost-cutting measure.”

Two years ago, the Environment Agency unveiled plans to transform and partly refill the reservoir, turning it into a wetland habitat, and for Blackburn with Darwen Council to take ownership of the site once the work was completed.

However, those plans were forced to be changed and now the Agency wants to decommission the site altogether and return it to its natural state.

The new plans propose to remove the main earth dam and use the excavated material to landscape the reservoir basin and eastern edge of the site.

It will also remove a second smaller dam and make safe any reservoir-related structures.

There will be a new river channel constructed through Jacks Key Clough, between the two dams, and the creation of a small permanent wetland area and pond within the former reservoir basin.

A new flood defence will be built at Clough Street, off Watery Lane. The key objective is to make the reservoir safe before May 31, 2016.

Project manager Paul Robertshaw, in the planning document, said if the work is carried out, six properties would remain at risk of flooding in a significant flood event as a result of removal of the dam.

He said: “The decision was therefore taken to take forward the option for decommissioning the reservoir in order to remove the flood risk. The most appropriate means of achieving this is to remove the dam and return the environment to a condition approaching its natural state.”

Residents can give their views on the project by visiting the Blackburn with Darwen planning site and searching for application number 10/14/1333 before February 3.

Mr Straw added: “It is very important that the local community has a chance to consider these plans and I would encourage everybody to make their views known.”