23 River Aire Facts: Length, Environmental Factors & Many More!

The Leeds City Centre is the most important and nearest city that is situated on the banks of the River Aire which flows in England.

The River Aire empties the water into the River Ouse at Airmyn. The ‘myn’ is the old English word for ‘river mouth'.

The former industrial landscape during the industrial revolution shows the navigable upstream of the river. The river was a part of the sea route connecting the Leeds train station. The river bypasses the ancient British road in North Yorkshire.

The water and food quality of the Aire River is the responsibility of the Environment Agency in Yorkshire. The fish life downstream of Leeds city is affected due to pollution. Water sinks near Leeds and causes floods.

This led to the formation of many flood alleviation schemes. The subterranean stream of the Aire River is also navigable downstream. Aire is a major river and a navigable river with a part of the river that flows underground the small settlement areas.

Whilst Trout are prevalent above Keighley, the river is host to others such as Chub, Dace, Barbel and Grayling, whilst Sea Trout have been noted as far upriver as Shipley. You may also find coarse fish and barrels for fishing in the river.

Read on to know more about the regions where River Aire flows through, afterward also check River Wye facts and River Wear facts.

Environmental Factors

The River Aire had many issues that were a threat to the fish life. The Yorkshire Water Authority was made in the year 1974 and the Water Act was passed in 1973 which changed things drastically for the health of the river.

The sewage treatment was redeveloped and with new investments, new plants were started. The water discharged into the River Aire is now treated by industries.

The River Aire has faced many issues due to changing weather patterns. In the middle of 20th century, River Aire was extremely polluted.

This deteriorated the health of the river and the River Aire became devoid of fish and other water species due to pollutants. There are efforts taken to maintain the marine status and health of the river so that the water ecosystems and the wildlife can exist along the course of the Aire River.

History Of River Aire

The name of the River Aire is an evolving name. The earliest record was as ‘Yr’ in the charter of 959 AD. Then the river is named Darcy too.

The river was then called ‘Eyr’ in a few sources. In 1857 it was believed that the word Aire came from the Common Brittonic word Isara which meant the strong one or the strong river.

The River Aire is one of the most important rivers of England. It flows in Yorkshire and is 92 mi (148 km) long.

The river has a meandering path that itself extends up to 90 mi (144 km). Between Malham Tarn and Airmyn, the River Aire drops from a height of 1,300 ft (394 m). After the drop, the river gets channelized below Leeds.

Leeds is a settlement town that was formed by the deposition of the silt by two close tributaries namely Hol Beck in the south and Meanwood Beck from North Yorkshire. After passing through Leeds the river is then known as Aire and Calder Navigation.

The Romans were the first civilization to pave their way via the River Aire at Castleford. The River Don emptied into the River Aire at Snaith. Then an engineer had changed the course of this River Don somewhere around the 1630s. Then the River Don is now confluence with the River Aire and then flows into the River Ouse.

The years between 1683-1684 was the year of the Great Frost when the River Aire froze solid ice sheets for over a month. This led to the start of conducting fair and ice sports events during the time.

Later a government order was passed in 1699 to make the town of Leeds easy to navigate. The second act was extended to build a navigation system in the upstream river that formed the basis of Liverpool Canal and Leeds.

Power Stations: River Aire

The River Aire is a major source of electricity generation. The fall of the river is essential to make hydropower projects. This led to establishing three thermal power stations along the River Aire.

The river caters to these power stations at Ferrybridge C, Castleford, Drax, and Eggborough. Out of these both Eggborough and Ferrybridge borrow their waters from the River Aire for generating thermal power.

However, due to limited stand-by capacity both of the plants have come to a halt. They stopped operating and did not generate power in 2016. To overcome this lack of power another hydroelectric power station was newly installed at Knottingley in November 2017.

This new power station is situated on Brotherton Weir and has been invested with 7.5 million euros. The project will generate 500 kilowatts of electricity and is assumed to be in operation for around 100 years.

Sustainable Factors

The River Aire is available to navigate upstream towards Leeds and downstream variable into two sections. The navigable access from downstream has access to canals and other waterways from the downstream navigation point.

Did you know during the Great Frost of 1683–84 the river froze solid for a month in Leeds?

The furthest west point that is sailed through the boat is called Crown Point. This crown point is straddled with a weir which was constructed and documented in 1636.

There are two clubs for popular sports activities of canoeing and rowing which are played along the banks of the River Aire. The two clubs have easily navigable sections designed to be played in Canoeing.

It is easily carried on both parts of the river. The two clubs are also protected by weirs which lie just beside the landings of their navigation sections.

There are two movable weirs installed in Knostrop and Crown point to initiate a strategic plan to reduce floods. This weir acts as a natural flood management technique to restrict the flow of the water of the River Aire.

Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for River Aire facts then why not take a look at River Jordan facts, or River Wear facts.