News Flood plan emergency meeting
Members of Snaith and Cowick Town Council this week held an emergency meeting with representatives from local parish councils and drainage boards in a bid to form a working group that can learn more about how a flood plan from the Environment Agency could affect their area.
Representatives from Goole Town Council and parish councils around the area, including Airmyn, Carlton, Eggborough, Gowdall, and Rawcliffe, met on Monday evening to discuss the Environment Agency's draft River Aire Catchment Flood Management Plan.
The plan proposes general policies for managing flooding along the river Aire and recommends that action is taken to increase the frequency of flooding in the Lower Aire Plain, which covers Snaith Gowdall, Rawcliffe and West Cowick, in order to "'eliver benefits locally or elsewhere".
Snaith and Cowick Town Mayor Cllr Frank Townshend told the meeting: "It is encouraging to see so many of you here. We have called this meeting because we are not happy with the Environment Agency's plan.
"We are looking to see something much more specific to our area, and want to see specific proposals for dealing with the river Aire and river Don, which affect our area."
The issue of flooding has been a hot potato recently with a series of disastrous downpours across the area and the country, and many people locally have been concerned about the latest proposals coming from the Environment Agency.
Cllr Tony Watson, from Airmyn Parish Council, said: "For many years, we have had dykes and ditches locally and slowly but surely, they have got filled in. There is no reference to these in the plan.
"I would prefer to see a grass-roots attack, with a proper survey done area by area. Only then can we work out what the Environment Agency is wanting to do."
Lisa Bruines, from Rawcliffe Parish Council, added: "I don't see why our area should be sacrificed to save other areas, it's not fair."
Following the meeting, East Riding ward councillors Caroline Fox and Gordon Megson, both of whom were present at the meeting, told this newspaper: "We both strongly object to the proposals raised in the Environment Agency's document.
"We feel that members of the public are not very aware of the contents of the document."
A group of representatives from councils and drainage boards around the local area nominated themselves for a working group that is to investigate the Environment Agency's plans further. The group will hold its first meeting on Monday, August 6 in the Old Grammar School, Snaith, beginning at 7pm.
Published on 26th July 2007 in News.
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