Flood defence management in Wales

Wales has escaped the worst of the flooding recently experienced in parts of the UK. Despite this, our communities face significant risks, with one in six properties at risk of flooding, including homes and businesses with an estimated total value of between £8-12 billion.    

Flooding is estimated to cause in the region of £200 million of damage each year in Wales.    

The Welsh Assembly Government takes the social, environmental and economic risks of flooding seriously and believes that it is important to provide strong strategic leadership, ensuring individuals and communities know who is responsible for managing the risks they face and who to turn to in the event of a flood.

Risk of Flooding
The term risk encompasses two things:
•    the likelihood of an event happening
•    the impacts or consequences that will result if an event occurs

In respect of flooding we know that both the likelihood and consequences are likely to increase over time. Changes in weather patterns, population levels, wealth and settlement patterns, as well as the way that land is managed, will all influence the nature of the risk we face.

More people living and working in an area that is at risk of flooding means that impact will be greater. As the value of assets increase so do the potential consequences if they are affected by flooding or erosion. Changes in land use will also lead to different run-off patterns.   

In addition to this, the risks posed by different sources of flooding are changing. Traditionally we have tended to focus on the risks posed by our river network and the sea, but we are seeing increasing damages from surface water flooding.    

Traditionally the main focus of flood management activity has been to manage the flooding from rivers and the sea, and investment has been targeted on defending these areas.  

Flood maps
The Environment Agency produces Flood Maps showing the extent of areas at risk of flooding from main rivers and the sea. These maps are updated quarterly, and supplied to many organisations, including local authorities, to help them manage flood risk through development planning and emergency planning.     

These flood maps are also published on the Environment Agency’s website and assist in the development of sophisticated ways of modelling flood events from rivers and the sea. This allows us to plan for them and warn communities of the risks. Warnings are issued via the Environment Agency Floodline Service.   

Our defences have been effective at protecting communities from the harmful effects of both flooding and coastal erosion. However, as the effects of climate change increase so do the risks of these defences being overtopped.  

Surface water
The current defence infrastructure does not protect against all sources of flooding. Surface water flooding, for example, is best managed through a range of responses that include use of sustainable drain systems and porous surfaces and regular maintenance and clearing of drains and culverts.   

We are improving our understanding of risks posed by reservoirs and plan to look at the risks posed by canals. However, our understanding of surface water flooding is less advanced.     

The nature of surface water flooding means that it often happens quickly, with little or no opportunity to warn communities. Local factors, including blockages caused by natural debris and rubbish, can make surface water flooding worse and can also exacerbate the effects of sewage flooding.

Climate Change
Evidence of the increasing risks from flooding across the UK is underpinned by a series of reports including the Foresight: Future Flooding Study, the Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change and most recently, the Pitt Review into the Summer 2007 Floods.     

The UK Climate Projection figures, published in July 2009, confirmed that in coming years we can expect increases in the volume and intensity of rainfall, rising sea levels and increased storminess. These changes in the climate make more frequent flooding and more severe flooding, as seen in Cumbria in 2009, seem inevitable.   

Along our coasts a trend of beach steepening has already been identified. Beaches are an integral part of our coastal protection systems and if eroded or steepened the pressure on constructed and natural defences will be intensified.   

Our policies on adapting to, and managing, the consequences of climate change are set out in our Climate Change Strategy for Wales, and all action in relation to flood and coastal erosion risk management will be consistent with those policies.

The Risk Management Approach
Adopting a risk management approach to flooding has been a key Welsh Assembly Government policy for a number of years.        In 2007 we launched our New Approaches Programme, and with the advent of the Flood and Water Management Act 2010 and the Flood Risk Regulations 2009 have enshrined the principles of risk management in legislation.    

Traditional approaches to dealing with the risks of flooding have focussed on the construction of defences to prevent flood waters or the harmful actions of the sea.    

However, as the effects of climate change increase, constructing more and higher defences is becoming an unsustainable solution environmentally, economically and socially.    

It is imperative that we manage the risks of flooding sustainably, and in line with the wider principles of our Sustainable Development policies set out in One Wales: One Planet.   

This extends both to the location and nature of risk management activities we fund. The location of defences can sometimes harm the wider environment and constructing and maintaining defences is becoming more expensive, leaving less money available to protect other communities. Also the current defence infrastructure does not protect against all sources of flooding.     

Risk management goes further than defence alone. It encompasses a range of measures to protect communities and the wider environment. This includes working with natural processes, utilising sustainable drainage systems and porous surfaces and undertaking regular maintenance and clearing of drains and culverts.

Our flood defence infrastructure will remain a key part of our flood risk management approach but set within a wider suite of measures.    

These principles were outlined in our recent consultation on the development of a National Strategy for flood and coastal erosion risk management in Wales.

Raising Awareness
Assembly Government investment in flood and coastal erosion risk management aims to reduce the impacts on people their communities, the economy and environment.    

Given the significance of these risks and the potential impacts of climate change, it is critical that individuals understand the risks they face, their consequences and how they can be managed. This will enable those at risk to play an active role in the flood risk management service they receive and help them take effective action to build up their resilience to a flood event if it occurs.   

Risk Management Authorities such as the Environment Agency have significantly increased their awareness raising work. The recent ‘Welly Boot’ tour of Wales is an example of this, with Environment Agency flood awareness officers visiting towns across Wales to talk to residents about the risk of flooding and provide advice on protecting themselves and their properties against flooding. This included advice on the preparation of personal flood plans and flood kits.    

This type of engagement is vital as while the direct economic costs of both flooding and coastal erosion can be calculated, they do not reflect the wider costs to communities. This includes the disruption and trauma, which in extreme circumstances can see people displaced, possessions lost and livelihoods destroyed.    

By raising awareness of the risks individuals and communities face we can help them to manage those risks and reduce the consequences for themselves.

The National Strategy
Our consultation on the development of a National Strategy for flood and coastal erosion risk management in Wales included information on the roles and responsibilities of the risk management authorities in Wales and how they should work together and put the public at the centre of the service they deliver. It also set out the role that individuals, communities and businesses should take in managing residual risks, making them more resilient to the impact of flooding and coastal erosion.    

It is important that we are clear and honest about what the Assembly Government and risk management authorities can and cannot do, and what we expect individuals and communities to do for themselves.   

The National Strategy is intended to set out the Welsh Assembly Government’s policies on flood and coastal erosion risk management and to establish a delivery framework that meets the needs of Wales both now and in the future. Making the changes now will deliver a holistic and flexible flood risk management system suitable for the needs of Wales in the 21st Century.   

An analysis of the responses to the recent consultation is underway and an Assembly Government response will issue in the new year. The final National Strategy will issue within this Assembly.