Sussex is famous for its eighty miles of coastline stretching from Camber in the east to past Selsey in the west.

It also has beautiful rivers such as the Ouse, Arun, Cuckmere, Adur – and two Rothers.

But less well known are the lakes and ponds dotted all over Sussex. Many of them, like the village ponds of Falmer and Rottingdean, are natural.

But others such as the beautiful stretch of water near Petworth known as Burton Mill Pond, are artificial.

This pond and many like it was built to serve the needs of the iron industry. At Burton the water flow was later used to power a mill.

Dew ponds on the Downs were also created by humans to trap water for animals who might otherwise have been a long way from it.

One of the best hidden lakes is Widewater, a salt water pond stretching from Shoreham to Lancing and shielded from the A259 by housing. It is a largely artificial creation almost a mile in length length but not much more than 20 yards wide.

But the largest lake in the Brighton area is next to the Ouse at Piddinghoe near Newhaven which is much used for sailing and fishing.

With the expansion of housing, there has been an increased demand for water. Most of it under the Downs can be reached by aquifers in the chalk.

But in the eastern half of the county and towards the north, reservoirs have been built to augment the supply.

One of the earliest was Powder Mill which provides water to the Hastings area. It was built in the 1930s and was followed in the 1950s by Darwell which is well hidden from view.

The most accessible of the reservoirs is Arlington near Polegate which has a walk all the way round – almost two miles. It was built to hold water from the Cuckmere which now flows quietly to its east. There are plans to extend it and increase its capacity.

Weir Wood near East Grinstead dates from the 1950s and has only limited access. Part of it was made to a nature reserve.

Ardingly to the north of Haywards Heath was built in the late 1970s by blocking two streams which is why it has a forked shape. A dam over 50 feet high was built to contain water.

It is linked to the nearby River Ouse, replenishing it in times of drought and sending overflow water there when the reservoir is full.

Dating from much the same time is Bewl Water, partly in Kent. It is the biggest stretch of water in south east England and the walk round it is 13 miles long.

It was created by blocking the small river of that name and is used extensively for water sports. It covers more than 800 acres.

Even with all these reservoirs, there is still a need for more water and there have been proposals to build a new reservoir at Ringmer.

There has been much opposition to new reservoirs from farmers and conservationists. But usually they are welcomed when they have settled in and look a natural part of the countryside.