Flood prevention funding welcomed

Over 1,000 flood schemes across the country will be built or repaired to protect thousands of homes and businesses from the dangers of flooding, the Government and Environment Agency have announced.

The £2.65 billion will be invested over two years towards construction, as well as repairs and maintenance of existing ones.

Locally a scheme to enhance defences against coastal erosion from Saltfleet to Gibraltar Point will get £674,000, while another £659,000 will go towards strengthening the flood defences along that stretch.

Fulbeck Pumping Station at Mablethorpe will get £878,000 towards refurbishment, while £579,000 will be spent on replacing the Trusthorpe Pumping Station.

Other schemes to get funding in the county include £11.698 million towards work on the Boston flood barrier and £11.270million on management of beach defences from Saltfleet to Gibraltar Point.

This year around £430 million is going towards flood scheme construction, while a further £220 million will be used to reinstate flood defences to their full standard of service and original design life to help protect communities. Further funding has been earmarked for repairing existing assets such as pumps, as well as important activity to warn and inform the public of flooding risks.

As the frequency of extreme weather events continues to increase due to climate change, this investment is part of the Government’s plan to boost economic growth in local communities, by protecting businesses and delivering new jobs in the face of the increasing risk of flooding as a result of climate change.

Caroline Douglass, Executive Director for Flood and Coastal Risk Management for the Environment Agency, said: “The delivery of these schemes will be welcome news for homeowners and businesses, who have experienced flooding in the past and may face more extreme weather as our climate continues to change.

“Our focus is now on working with local councils and Regional Flood and Coastal Committees to deliver these schemes on time, ensuring as many properties as possible are protected.”

Colin Davie, executive councillor for economy, environment and planning at the county council welcomed the extra money but said no-one really knows how much spending is really needed.

He said: “It is very important to recognise that in recent years we have had a number of homes in Lincolnshire that were flooded – 200 over the last winter. It is clear these incidents are happening more often.”

Coun Davie added: “The defences are weak and need to be improved and repaired. Do they need more money – yes.”

He said the drainage boards and the Environment Agency, along with other local authorities have done a tremendous job to keep the county safe but a lot of people have had their homes flooded.

Coun Davie said investment in coastal and other defences is incredibly important: “This will be an ongoing task in the years ahead as intense rainfall events some to come much more regularised and we need to do a lot more in terms of flood resilience.”

The county council has just set up a £1 million fund to help households affected by flooding in January to make their homes more resilient in future.

"It will be an issue for future governments and councils and the new Mayor of Greater Lincolnshire and we certainly need to get more money into these areas going forward,” said Coun Davie.