How eight beavers solved a decades-old Tube flooding problem

An unexpected group of engineers has solved a decades-old flooding issue affecting northwest London residents’ homes, streets, and the local Tube station.

The reintroduction of beavers in Paradise Fields, Ealing, has prevented flooding for the first time in years, with the area having experienced problems since the 1970s.

It’s an issue that the council had tried – and failed – to solve with large-scale and expensive interventions, but less than a year after five beavers were introduced to the site in October 2023, the “ecosystem engineers” had manufactured the complex wetlands and built a network of at least five dams.

Urban beaver officer Seniz Mustafa said the dams had slowed the flow of water downstream and turned the park into a natural sponge capable of storing large volumes of water.

She said people in the community were “so happy” with their arrival, which had drawn thousands to the site.

“The community of Greenford was greatly affected by [flooding], and 2024 was the first year the local area didn’t flood. It’s not just people trying to get to the Tube, but it’s people in their houses, going to work, going to school, trying to drive their car, so it’s had such a direct impact,” Ms Mustafa told The Independent.

There are now at least eight beavers living in the park, but Ms Mustafa suspects that Willow, the mother beaver, has had more kits.

Along with a beaver project set up in Enfield in 2023, it is the first time the creatures have been in the capital for at least 400 years after they were hunted to extinction for their fur and meat.

It has also inspired a beaver project in Croydon, which the council hopes will arrive in 2028.

The Ealing beavers even gained the attention of David Attenborough, who featured them in his Wild London BBC documentary.

He said: “If someone had told me when I first moved here that one day I would have been watching wild beavers in London, I would have thought they were mad.

“The whole wetland has been brought back to life, and it can now retain a lot more water. Incredibly, for the first time in a decade, residential areas downstream have been flood-free.”

Alongside flood mitigation, the animals’ felling of trees has also allowed sunlight back into the brook, while slower flows have improved water quality.

It has caused fish to return to the area, and meant more complex food webs have been able to develop and support insects, birds, bats and amphibians.

Ealing Council said that prior to the reintroduction, large-scale interventions had taken place in the area, straightening and concreting the Brent River channel to try to prevent flooding.

The council said the beaver’s impact was noticeable in the local community. During recent, record-breaking rainfall at Paradise Fields, the Central line station and the area around it remained dry, it added.

Dominic Moffitt, Ealing Council’s cabinet member for climate action, said: “This project shows how working with nature can improve our resilience and help us respond to the growing challenges of climate change.

“By supporting the reintroduction of beavers at Paradise Fields, we have enabled a natural solution that is slowing the flow of water, reducing flood risk for local communities, and improving biodiversity at the same time.

“It’s a powerful example of how innovative, nature-based approaches can complement traditional flood management, deliver lasting benefits for the environment, and enable better living for Ealing residents.”

The project was championed by Sir Sadiq Khan, who said he was “pleased” to have proven critics of the project wrong.

A spokesperson for the mayor of London said: “It’s fantastic to see the Ealing beavers thriving in their new home. Nature is more than just something we visit; it’s part of how London works, and beavers play an important role in supporting local habitats.

“It’s incredible that in only a few short years they have helped stop flooding at a local station, transformed Paradise Fields into a flourishing wetland and helped to improve the biodiversity of the area.”