Black Brook in Lancashire

Lancashire

Lancashire is a non-metropolitan county of historic origin in the North West of England. It takes its name from the city of Lancaster, and is sometimes known as the County of Lancaster. Although Lancaster is still considered to be the county town, Lancashire County Council is based in Preston...

 has its source at Great Hill

Great Hill

Great Hill is a hill in Lancashire on Anglezarke Moor, between the towns of Chorley and Darwen. It is part of the West Pennine Moors and lies approximately 3 miles north of Winter Hill, which is the highest point in the area at 456 m ....

 in the West Pennine Moors

West Pennine Moors

The West Pennine Moors cover an area of approximately of moorland and reservoirs in Lancashire and Greater Manchester, England.The West Pennine Moors are separated from the main Pennine range by the Irwell Valley. The moorland includes Withnell, Anglezarke and Rivington Moors in the extreme west,...

. The water is acidic due to a high level of peat

Peat

Peat is an accumulation of partially decayed vegetation matter or histosol. Peat forms in wetland bogs, moors, muskegs, pocosins, mires, and peat swamp forests. Peat is harvested as an important source of fuel in certain parts of the world...

 in the uplands near to Round Loaf

Round Loaf

Round Loaf is a Neolithic or Bronze Age tumulus on the West Pennine Moors on Anglezarke Moor, within the locale of Chorley in Lancashire, England.It is the largest of its type in the North West of England, dating back 3500 years...

, giving the brook its black colour. The young river was known as Warth Brook in olden Heapey

Heapey

Heapey is a village and civil parish of the Borough of Chorley, in Lancashire, England. The village is two miles from Chorley and on the western fringe of the West Pennine Moors. In 2001 the population was 955.- History:...

. A feeder stream also known as Black Brook joins near Kittiwake Road - this short and weak water course commences at Eagle Tower. The jointed brook feeds Anglezarke Reservoir

Anglezarke Reservoir

Anglezarke Reservoir is the largest reservoir in the Rivington chain to the west of Anglezarke in Lancashire, England. Anglezarke Reservoir has three embankments, the longest, the Charnock Embankment is 777 metres long and 9.45 metres high, the Knowsley Embankment is 219.5 metres long and 14...

, and joins the River Yarrow

River Yarrow (Lancashire)

The River Yarrow is in Lancashire, with its source at an area called Will Narr at Hordern Stoops, along Spitlers Edge - the Chorley/Blackburn boundary - on the West Pennine Moors. The river feeds the Yarrow Reservoir, which in turn feeds the Anglezarke and Upper and Lower Rivington Reservoirs...

 in lowland Chorley

Chorley

Chorley is a market town in Lancashire, in North West England. It is the largest settlement in the Borough of Chorley. The town's wealth came principally from the cotton industry...

 at Yarrow Bridge

Yarrow Bridge

Yarrow Bridge is a small road bridge which crosses the River Yarrow in Chorley, Lancashire. The bridge carries the A6 road over the river. There is also a pub and Garage next door to bridge which carries the same name....

. The entire course of Black Brook and the River Yarrow fall within Chorley

Chorley

Chorley is a market town in Lancashire, in North West England. It is the largest settlement in the Borough of Chorley. The town's wealth came principally from the cotton industry...

 and its villages.

History

Black Brook powered a water mill at Leicester Mill, White Coppice

White Coppice

White Coppice is a hamlet near Chorley, Lancashire, England. It was the most populated part of the township of Anglezarke in the 19th century. Close to the settlement in the early 19th century were quarries and small coal mines. The hamlet lies to the north of Anglezarke Reservoir in the Rivington...

, from which Leicester Mill Quarries gained their name.

Wildlife

After suffering many years of pollution due to effluent

Effluent

Effluent is an outflowing of water or gas from a natural body of water, or from a human-made structure.Effluent is defined by the United States Environmental Protection Agency as “wastewater - treated or untreated - that flows out of a treatment plant, sewer, or industrial outfall. Generally refers...

 discharge from Whitter's Factory, and Stanley's Factory, the river is now much cleaner, and as such has attracted birds such as Dipper

Dipper

Dippers are members of the genus Cinclus in the bird family Cinclidae, named for their bobbing or dipping movements. They are unique among passerines for their ability to dive and swim underwater.-Description:...

, Grey Wagtail

Grey Wagtail

The Grey Wagtail is a small member of the wagtail family, Motacillidae. The species looks similar to the Yellow Wagtail but has the yellow on its underside restricted to the throat and vent. Breeding males have a black throat...

 and Kingfisher

Kingfisher

Kingfishers are a group of small to medium sized brightly coloured birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species being found in the Old World and Australia...

, and fish including Trout

Brown trout

The brown trout and the sea trout are fish of the same species....

, Chub

European chub

The European chub , sometimes called the round chub, fat chub, chevin, pollard or simply "the" chub, is a freshwater fish of the family Cyprinidae...

, Dace

Common dace

The common dace , also known as the dace or the Eurasian dace, is a fresh- or brackish-water fish belonging to the family Cyprinidae. It is an inhabitant of the rivers and streams of Europe north of the Alps as well as in Asia. It is most abundant in France and Germany, and has also spread to...

 and Barbel

Barbel (fish species)

Barbels are group of small carp-like freshwater fish, almost all of the genus Barbus. They are usually found in gravel and rocky-bottomed slow-flowing waters with high dissolved oxygen content. A typical adult barbel will range from 25 to 100 cm in length and weigh anywhere between 200 g...

.