Futures Forum: Urban runoff and flooding in Sidmouth... Relying on 'Victorian plumbing' or building on soakaways...
Futures Forum: Climate change... and protecting Sidmouth against rising sea levels
Futures Forum: Sidmouth and sewage
To what extent have 'local people' been 'consulted'?
Streetlife | Rain storm
Futures Forum: Making communities resilient to flooding: >>> "Learning to listen: a community approach to understanding localised flood events"
Futures Forum: Sidmouth Beach Management Plan Steering Group - report
What about 'sustainable solutions'?
Futures Forum: Reducing flooding through sustainable drainage systems >>> Water Sensitive Urban Design in the South-West
How should local authorities be 'managing' flooding?
Futures Forum: Local authorities and managing the natural environment
But need an official 'flood plan' mean massive tanks in the Knowle parkland?
The Herald today published details from a County Council meeting:
Sidmouth’s flood risk plan gets council approval
11:27 18 March 2015
The Ford in Sidmouth during the floods on Saturday. Photo by Terry Ife ref shs 8169-28-12TI
A flood protection scheme that could benefit up to 259 Sidmouth properties, at a possible cost of £436,000, was approved by councillors this week.
Devon County Council (DCC) highways boss Stuart Hughes presented a flood action plan to his cabinet colleagues on Wednesday, identifying high risk areas and improvement works.
He called for a continued proactive approach to flood management and said the council, as a lead local flood authority, needs to become a statutory consultee to local planning authorities. Councillor Hughes said although it is still early days in the scheme’s development, it is good news that things are progressing.
The preferred flood management option for Sidmouth would involve an overground storage facility, located in the Knowle grounds that would fill and empty during and after a storm. This solution is identified in the Sidmouth Surface Water Management plan as providing maximum protection for the town, and could benefit 142 residential and 117 non-residential properties. With an estimated price tag of £436,000 for the preferred option, Cllr Hughes said the scheme will be developed based on a cost-benefit analysis and is subject to a funding bid from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra).
He said: “Future plans depend on what, if any, scheme can be promoted with a robust business case and justified cost benefit for national funding. Additional partnership funding will also need to be sourced.”
Mr Hughes said he will be looking for opportunities to speed up the date for Defra funding to be released, which is currently scheduled at 2020-21.
A close working relationship with other authorities is developing to coordinate a county-wide flood risk management strategy. He said DCC is also liaising with East Devon District Council to further understand the specific flooding issues at Bulverton Park and Woolbrook Road.
Sidmouth’s flood risk plan gets council approval - News - Sidmouth HeraldThis is the view from the East Devon Watch blog:
SIDMOUTH’S FLOOD RISK “PLAN” GETS “COUNCIL APPROVAL”
18th March 2015
Except it isn’t a plan – it is a currently preferred option. And it hardly merits approval as there is as yet no money to fund it.
[Sidmouth DCC Councillor Stuart Hughes] said: “Future plans depend on what, if any, scheme can be promoted with a robust business case and justified cost benefit for national funding.
“Additional partnership funding will also need to be sourced.”
Can unfunded, aspirational ideas really be plans – or are they election “promises”?
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