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| Defence: A barrier in use in Upton-on-Severn which could be used in Oxford |
A PROPOSAL for a flood barrier on Osney Island, Oxford, costing up to £1m has been submitted to the Environment Agency.
It is on a list of 12 priority proposals delivered to the agency by Oxford City Council, amid claims that nothing has been done to strengthen Oxford's flood defences since the devastation in July.
A multi-million-pound package of key measures was drawn up from a list of 66 proposals to combat flooding, gathered from meetings of residents' groups and council area committees.
But residents say that it is being left to them to come up with initiatives to protect their communities. And with the onset of autumn, they claim the Environment Agency still has no proposals of its own to protect thousands of homes across the city.
The idea of a temporary flood barrier for parts of Osney Island was proposed by the local residents' association, which believes it should be put up in East Street and West Street.
Residents say it should be of a similar design to the temporary barrier used at Upton- upon-Severn.
It would be stored locally, with experienced people needed to erect it. Permanent foundations would be required to support the barriers, with council officers putting the cost at between £500,000 and £1m.
The Environment Agency is being urged to review the height of the East Street and West Street riverbanks, with this project also costed at between £500,000 and £1m.
And the priority list also includes a proposed defensive earthbank, or 'bund' on the north side of Botley Road, although this has caused concerns about Binsey being even more severely flooded.
The chairman of Osney Island Residents' Association, Richard Thurston, pictured, said it represented "a great list to work with," although the costs "made his eyes water".
But Mr Thurston argues the city council may have over-estimated some costs. He said: "I approached one supplier who said a temporary barrier could be rented for about £10,000 a year."
He said the barrier would be about 50ft long, overlaid with panels and covered with an impermeable liner. Rising flood-waters apply a downward pressure on the frame to keep it in place.
The 12 measures that the city council wants explored as a matter of priority were spelt out at a meeting of the city council's environment scrutiny committee.
The list contains proposals to dredge and widen main rivers in the western corridor, including the Seacourt Stream, Bullstake Stream, Hinksey Drain, Hinksey Stream and Redbridge Stream.
Nigel Bray, a spokesman for the Environment Agency, said agency staff would be working closely with city council officers to see if the proposals could be taken forward.
He said: "On November 1, I will be given the green light on whether the Environment Agency can go ahead and assess the effectiveness of these schemes."
But with fears of winter flooding heightened by a week of heavy rainfall and incidents of flash flooding, Mr Thurston said residents were disappointed with the lack of progress.
He said: "Within two weeks of the floods we produced a list of things we would like to happen for the EA and city council. Three months on, it is now being looked at. It is too slow.
"These things should have been investigated by now. It seems all the action and ideas are coming from the residents."
Susanna Pressel, Oxford city councillor for the Jericho and Osney Ward, also expressed concern about the lack of urgency in delivering flood defences.
She said "It's now almost three months since about 200 homes in Oxford were flooded. But it turns out that officers at the Environment Agency and the city council are still at the stage of drawing up lists of possible actions. It seems that there is no single solution to the problem of flooding.
"We are told that if this gets the go-ahead in November, it will then take about 18 months to do the research. It is appalling. They should be aiming to start some of the most obviously helpful projects within weeks, not months. Many of us are worried that there might be more flooding before long."
Other proposals on the list submitted to the EA are:
Angie Cott, from the Wolvercote Commoners Committee, said she thought the list of priority schemes was weighted too heavily in favour of Osney residents, arguing more proposals affecting Wolvercote should have been included.
Sid Phelps, the chairman of the council's scrutiny committee, said a progress report on the 12 recommendations should go to the scrutiny committee's December meeting.
He added: "We need to decide which schemes are value for money and which ones we can proceed with."
David Ferguson, for the Environment Agency, said: "We cannot conjure things out of nowhere. Proposals have to be looked at properly as part of the wider Oxford strategy.
"We need to look at everything that is being suggested. Where measures can be put in place over the next 18 months to two years, we will do so. But we cannot do everything that we want to. We just do not have the funding."
