A Stockbridge family is calling on the Environment Agency to replace trees on a river bank which was stripped bare following last autumn's floods.

Anne Manning, 36, from Florist Street, says the removal of trees from the bank of the River Aire, by Aireworth Bridge, has left the banks completely exposed.

She and other residents say they can't understand why trees right at the top of the bank, which they say had no contact with the flood waters, were felled during December.

Residents have also raised concerns about the levels of litter strewn along the length of the river bank.

Anne, who works as a classroom assistant at East Morton Primary School, says: "I went away one morning and when I came back from school the trees on the opposite bank had gone.

"We used to have a lovely view out of our kitchen window but now all we can see is the industrial estate on the other side of the river and rubbish that's been dumped on the bank.

"Some of the willow trees on this side of the river needed to come down but the Environment Agency just seems to have gone mad.

"I can't see how it improves the river flow. The only thing its done is left us with an eyesore.

"A lot of ducks nest in this stretch of the river and you see lots of kingfishers, but there is nothing left for the wildlife now the trees have gone."

She adds: "I contacted Envir-onmental Health about all the rubbish on the bank and they said they couldn't do anything about it.

"I feel the Envir-onment Agency should come back and tidy things up, as well as plant a few trees at the top of the bank."

A spokesman for the Environment Agency says: "We say to residents that we don't remove trees unless absolutely certain that it is necessary.

"We do look into a situation like this very carefully and take out only what is required.

"The trees were impeding the flow of the river during a major event and what we have done is lifted the canopy to improve flow and stop debris collecting.

The Environment Agency's chief executive Barbara Young travelled to Keighley yesterday to speak to Stockbridge residents hit by last year's floods.