WORRIED residents whose homes back on to the site of York’s new Derwenthorpe development say their gardens have started flooding, despite the dry weather.

The problem has so far affected the bottom of a couple of gardens in Russett Drive, off Meadlands, just over the fence from the site on York’s eastern outskirts where 540 homes are set to be built by the Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust.

Householders believe it has been caused by major earthworks on the site in recent months as developers prepare to start building homes later this month.

They fear the flooding will become considerably worse and affect many more properties in the Meadlands area in coming days and weeks, particularly if York is hit by heavy rain.

One resident, Len Butler, 82, said: “I am worried. I have lived here for 46 years and never seen my garden flood like this, even after torrential rain like we had in November 2000.”

Tom Hughes, spokesman for the Meadlands Area Residents Association (MARA), said: “It’s totally unacceptable. We have repeatedly warned them over the past 11 years that Derwenthorpe might cause this type of problem but we were ignored.

“Now it needs to be urgently investigated and action taken to tackle the problem before it gets any worse, and starts to affect houses.”

He said he believed that the work on the Derwenthorpe site had affected the water table in the area, and said he was concerned there might be an opposite effect in a drought summer with the land becoming too dry.

Terry and Janet Johnson, MARA members and Osbaldwick Parish Councillors, said they were also deeply concerned about the flooding.

The Joseph Rowntree Housing Trust was unavailable for comment.