Seafield Pond

This is a view of Seafield Pond where I take the dogs for their afternoon walk. The tracks in the foreground grass were made by a digger which was transporting pipes from the pond to the sea wall a distance of approximately thirty yards. This is also the site of quite a few of my blips, most notably my images of the swan family which resides on the pond.

The area was originally the site of Belhaven Brickworks and then it became a local refuse dump. The area was eventually flattened with a hollow for the pond to form. There are also a couple blow holes located some distance from the pond which allow some of the toxic methane gas from the buried rubbish to escape. As there is no natural drainage for the pond during the heavy rains of the winter months (and we have had plenty of those lately) the level of the pond rises considerably until it begins to overflow into the adjacent caravan site. At this point the local authority intervenes and run a pump and pipes from the pond to the sea walls in order to drain the pond until the water reaches manageable levels. It usually takes 10 days to 2 weeks for this operation to be completed and although quite a considerable displacement of water takes place it is done gradually and as far as Belhaven Bay is concerned it is but 'a drop in the ocean' so as to speak.

The caterpillar track marks which appear to gouge deep into the surrounding grassland also disappear over time and by the summer months they can be scarcely seen. This operation occurs every year and is therefore part of our seasonal calendar, though it must be a fairly costly expenditure for the local authority.