Southampton Water
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Fawley oil refinery from Netley Hospital. |
Southampton Water is a stretch of the sea north of the
Isle of Wight and the
Solent, in
England. The city of
Southampton lies at its most northerly point. Along its saltmarsh-fringed western shores lie the
New Forest villages of
Hythe and "the waterside",
Dibden Bay, and the
Esso oil refinery at
Fawley. On the slightly steeper eastern shore are the Southampton suburb of Weston, the villages of
Netley and
Hamble-le-Rice, and the
Royal Victoria Country Park.
Together with the
Solent, Southampton Water is world-renowned for
yachting.
The rivers
Test,
Itchen and
Hamble flow into Southampton Water.
Southampton's emergence as a major
port, and particularly as a port handling very large vessels, depended partly on certain geographical features of Southampton Water. Its depth, even in its undeveloped state, was generous; this depth of water has been increased over the years with comparative ease since the soft silt of the river-bed allows for easy
dredging. An additional factor is the phenomenon of the "double tide", which is caused by the slowing effect of the
Isle of Wight on tides entering Southampton Water. This results in unusually prolonged periods of high water which greatly facilitates the movements of very large
ships.
Southampton Water is an estuary with major potential for land use conflicts. An area of urban development (the Waterside) runs in the narrow band of land between Southampton Water and the New Forest National Park. Villages such as
Marchwood, Hythe,
Dibden Purlieu,
Holbury and Fawley have all experienced significant growth. Between Hythe and Marchwood, an area of undeveloped land - Dibden Bay - was the site of a proposed port expansion by Associated British ports. This was argued to be essential for the continued economic development of the Port of Southampton but the development was vigorously opposed by conservation groups. The intertidal marshlands of Dibden Bay have international significance (Ramsar status).
The planning enquiry eventually rejected the application from
Associated British Ports recommending that the environmental value of the site could not be over-ruled when there were alternative sites for port expansion in southern England which had not yet been fully explored. The government accepted the recommendations of the planning inspector in April 2005.
