Yorkshire flood defences; Environment Agency must respect basic geography – The Yorkshire Post says

ALL those residents in the Calder Valley who live in fear of the area’s air raid siren going off, signalling a danger to homes and businesses because of impending flooding, will be reassured that work is continuing on a £35m project to protect property.
By YP Comment
Published 16th Sep 2020, 05:50 BST
This was the scene of devastation in Mytholmroyd in February.This was the scene of devastation in Mytholmroyd in February.
This was the scene of devastation in Mytholmroyd in February.

The hope now – Covid-19, lockdowns and weather permitting – is that this scheme can be completed by the end of the year so towns like Mytholmroyd are less vulnerable to the devastating floods which submerged so many properties earlier this year.

But it does need to be pointed out to the Environment Agency and others that it took repeated floods for preventative action to be taken despite David Cameron, the then Prime Minister, travelling to flood-hit areas in 2012 just before the 2012 Olympics and promising Government action.

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And while some people will, hopefully, be able to sleep easier once this work is completed, there’s much more to do to protect other vulnerable Yorkshire communities from the type of extensive flooding that has caused so much human – and financial – misery here in recent years.

Work on flood prevention schemes for the Upper Calder Valley is continuing.Work on flood prevention schemes for the Upper Calder Valley is continuing.
Work on flood prevention schemes for the Upper Calder Valley is continuing.

A legacy of decades of under-investment in flood defences, and changes to the management of rivers that has adversely affected the flow of water, it’s also important that policy-makers do not consider areas in isolation.

Any credible prevention strategy will look at a river’s catchment area in its entirety, so well-intended defences – including natural barriers – in upstream areas do not simply increase the risks, and risk of flooding, downstream. On this basic geography, the EA – as well as Defra and others – still have much to prove.

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Thank you

James Mitchinson

Related topics:Environment AgencyYorkshireCovid-19Calder ValleyYorkshire PostDavid CameronDEFRA

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