Editing The Fens (section)

===Modern drainage===
The major part of the draining of the Fens was effected in the late 18th and early 19th century, again involving fierce local rioting and sabotage of the works. The final success came in the 1820s when windpumps were replaced with powerful coal-powered [[steam engine]]s, such as [[Stretham Old Engine]], which were themselves replaced with diesel-powered pumps, such as those at [[Prickwillow Museum]] and, following [[World War II]], the small electric stations that are still used today.

[[File:Prickwillow Drainage Engine Museum.jpg|thumb|right|[[Prickwillow Museum]] shows the changing face of the Fens and the story of their drainage. It is housed in an old pumping station.]]
The dead vegetation of the peat remained undecayed because it was deprived of air (the peat being anaerobic). When it was drained, the oxygen of the air reached it, since then the peat has been slowly oxidizing.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.greatfen.org.uk/about/faqs|title=Frequently Asked Questions|website=Greatfen.org.uk|language=en|access-date=2019-09-20}}</ref> This, together with the shrinkage on its initial drying and the removal of soil by the wind, has meant that much of the Fens lies below [[Tide|high tide level]]. As the highest parts of the drained fen are now only a few metres above mean sea level, only sizeable [[dike (construction)|embankment]]s of the rivers, and general flood defences, stop the land from being inundated. Nonetheless, these works are now much more effective than they were.

The Fens today are protected by {{convert|60|mi|km}} of embankments defending against the sea and {{convert|96|mi|km}} of river embankments. Eleven [[internal drainage board]] (IDB) groups maintain 286 pumping stations and {{convert|3800|mi|km}} of watercourses, with the combined capacity to pump 16,500 [[Olympic-size swimming pool]]s in a 24-hour period or to empty [[Rutland Water]] in 3 days.<ref name=NFU>{{cite web | url = http://www.nfuonline.com/Regions/East-Anglia/News/Why-farming-matters-in-the-Fens(2)/ | title = Why Farming Matters in the Fens (2) | access-date = 17 March 2011 | format = PDF | publisher = NFU East Anglia | year = 2008 | url-status = dead | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110427133115/http://www.nfuonline.com/Regions/East-Anglia/News/Why-farming-matters-in-the-Fens(2)/ | archive-date = 27 April 2011 | df = dmy-all }}</ref>