News Flood prevention work threatened
Residents in North Cave have been left dismayed to hear that the Environment Agency (EA) appears to have 'moved the goalposts' for flood defence applications.
At a recent public meeting held in North Cave with Mr Peter Holmes of the EA it became apparent that two applications for flood defence projects worth over £1.5million submitted to the Environment Agency for Medium Term Plan (MTP) funding were under threat. The two Howdenshire areas, North Cave and the Lower Ouse Internal Drainage Board area including the villages of Gilberdyke, Blacktoft, Eastrington and Laxton, now face an agonising wait.
Cllr Paul Robinson said: "I am reliably informed that during DEFRA/Environment Agency training workshops held in June of this year the participants were told that any application with a scoring of over 20 on their predetermined scale would have been 'favourable for approval'. The two subsequent applications from the flood-hit areas above scored well into the twenties.
"It now appears that there has been a shifting of the goal posts, as during the North Cave meeting, Mr Peter Holmes stated that figure had been raised to the high twenties or even as high as 30, effectively ruling out these two applications.
"This is potentially very bad news for Gilberdyke, Blacktoft, Laxton and Eastrington, who were hoping the MTP application would be used to fund the £1.4million flood prevention scheme, to include dyke widening, new dykes and a new pumping station."
Phil Garland, North Cave resident and chairman of the Parish Flood Committee in the village, added: "As a village we must all have serious worries over the commitment of the EA towards the flood protection of rural communities. The insistence by the EA for us to look to a flood defence scheme part funded via our own fundraising and part funded by Local Authority money is ludicrous.
"If the beck and drainage had been adequately maintained we would not be in this situation. This is, in my opinion, just another example of a government department that is under-funded and is overrun with middle management bureaucracy and will have a detrimental effect on our village and lives."
Mr Garland continued: "The opinion of the Environment Agency with regards to our MTP application is disappointing. However, the community has been thrown a lifeline where the work required in North Cave could be funded by a scheme under the local levy-funding route.
"We are committed now to working extremely closely with the Agency and their consultants to produce a flood defence scheme that will, if funding is granted, protect the future of our village."
Paul Robinson concluded: "Having spoken to fellow councillors, MPs and residents alike there is a shared frustration that the Environment Agency are still maintaining the following position: because of the rainfall on June 25, 2007 whatever preventative routine maintenance work on watercourses and facilities that should have been carried out previously would have made little or no difference to the flooding that occurred on the day.
"In my view this is clearly becoming an ever more untenable position to take, as more and more contradictory anecdotal evidence comes to light that if the work that should have been carried out had been, houses would have been saved as the extent of the flooding was mitigated."
Howden MP David Davis added: "I am concerned that, especially in North Cave, the cost of the flood defence work required is relatively small, compared with the costs incurred by householders and their insurance companies as a result of the damage caused by the June 25 floods.
"I have written to the Environment Agency asking for an explanation as to why Howdenshire villages may well lose out to a shortfall in Government funding for flood defences."
Published on 29th November 2007 in News.
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