The Jubilee River story (0700) - The £300m LTFRMS* proposal
(* - Lower Thames Flood Risk Management Strategy now called
LTFAS)
IS THIS COMMON SENSE FLOOD DEFENCE?
The EA re-presented the LTFRMS proposals at three exhibitions in
Wraysbury, Egham and Molesey - November/December 2011.
There was no presentation at Datchet, and there was also a lack
of publicity.
There was little physical change to the material plans, but a
significant proportion of the funding now has to be raised from local and
private sources. This point had been made clear in the House of Commons on
23 November when the PAC quizzed Dr Leinster.
Below is the document that I distributed at the EA exhibitions
with some additional links -
Lower Thames Flood Risk Management Strategy
IS THIS COMMON SENSE FLOOD DEFENCE?
I
have no confidence in these proposals or the ability of the Environment
Agency to reduce the risk of flooding using such complex and expensive
engineering solutions!
For six weeks I attended the Public
Inquiry into the MWEFAS project in 1992.
In my opinion the £300m LTFRMS
proposal is just history repeating itself, and worse still the EA is
unwilling and /or unable to learn from its mistakes.
The River Thames suffering from
benign neglect due to lack of dredging. The bed is rising with a
consequential and significant reduction in conveyance capacity.
I urge you to check the EA web site
maps for all types of flooding in your area. The insurance companies are
using the information supplied by the EA to increase both premiums and
excess. The situation is already difficult, but when the current agreement
(about insurance availability) between the Government and the ABI runs out
in 2013, things could get worse!
My final point is that you ensure
that the gutters on your house are clean and working properly. The local
Council keeps the highway drains clean so that the roads don’t flood, but in
contrast the EA (with responsibility for main river flooding) deliberately
ignores the Thames, preferring instead to propose extravagant new projects
for enhanced reputation and kudos.
27/11/2011 Published and printed by
Ewan Larcombe, 67 Lawn Close, Datchet SL3 9LA
This in response to a Lower Thames Strategy
public exhibition from professor Donald Longmore
OBE FRCS FRCR of Chertsey Lane TW18 3LQ.
I am a riparian owner and have lived in my
Thames side house for 52 years and have always
been involved with the river.
The public exhibition only served to convince
most of those present that there are systemic
problems in the Environment Agency (EA) because
MOST of the people representing the EA did not
know what they were talking about.
With the exception of one engineer hey had two
misconceptions:-
a) They believe that the river is self cleaning.
It is not and this reach is on average about 1
meter shallower than it was in 1960 therefore
its capacity at a flow rate of just 3 knots is
reduced by about 900 cubic meters / minute. I
appreciate that this extra capacity would not
have been sufficient to the accommodate
additional flow from the Jubilee River, however
a properly maintained river would cause less
flooding. There are now so many different
excuses given for failing to dredge the river
that none are credible. The latest reason given
is that there is a “health and safety issue”
because of radioactivity in the mud. Previously
we were told that there was a European Directive
and before that we were told that the Thames
Conservancy “overdredged” the river and now the
molluscs are used as a reason.
b) They still believe that the Jubilee River
would only raise the level downstream by 35
centimetres. The hydrographic study on which
this figure is based is unsound calculations and
the facts prove so. I have had the sums checked
by colleagues at Imperial College who find them
laughable.
It would be wiser not to expose the EA
representatives to public scrutiny while they
are so ill informed. It also creates a bad
impression that there are so many staff.
THE REAL ISSUE IS THAT THERE ARE NO PLANS TO
DEAL WITH POTENTIAL FLOODING BEFORE 2017 AND
THEN THERE WILL BE POSSIBLE FURTHER DELAYS TO
STARTING THE RELIEF SCHEME. THIS IS
UNACCEPTABLE. SHORTAGE OF FUNDS DOES NOT SEEM TO
BE A VALID REASON FOR DELAY. [PLEASE NOTE THAT A
MAJOR SCHEME IS UNDER WAY TO REMOVE THE HISTORIC
STEPS BETWEEN PENTON HOOK LOCK AND BELL WEIR.
THE MONEY WASTED ON THIS SCHEME WHICH HAS
MATERIALLY DAMAGED THE APPEARANCE, WILD LIFE,
AMENITIES AND SAFETY OF THIS STRETCH OF THE
RIVER. WOULD HAVE BEEN BETTER USED FOR FLOOD
PREVENTION.
THERE SHOULD BE NO MORE BUILDING IN AREAS WHERE
THE RIVER IS EFFECTIVELY SEVERELY RESTRICTED.
CHERTSEY BRIDGE IS AN OBSTRUCTION TO FLOW; WHY
THEREFORE HAS A MASSIVE DEVELOPMENT BEEN ALLOWED
BESIDE THE BRIDGE?
Work to protect 15,000 homes
in the Lower Thames area from flooding has been delayed by government
funding cuts, residents have been told.
Properties, from Datchet in Berkshire, through Surrey to Teddington in
west London were at "significant" risk, the Environment Agency (EA) said.
But it said it only has 55% of funding for the £300m flood protection
scheme.
In 2010, the government backed the work but said funding for it should be
shared with local authorities.
Kathleen Croft, whose home has flooded three times since 2000, said it
was very worrying.
'House rebuilt'
"It was absolutely terrifying," Ms Croft, who runs Paws Boarding Cattery
in Stanwell Moor, said.
"My business was put out of action for a month and I had to live in one
room for five months while the entire house was rebuilt.
"It cost the insurance company £100,000."
The EA has held three public exhibitions this week, at Wraysbury, Staines
and West Molesey, to explain the progress of the flood protection scheme.
It includes building three flood diversion channels, improving existing
river weirs and providing localised protection for some homes.
The scheme was approved by the EA in November 2010 and the Department for
Environment, Food and Rural Affairs in July this year.
Expenditure reduction
But the government's Comprehensive Spending review last year said the
cost would have to be shared with local authorities through "partnership
funding".
Public meetings were last held during a consultation period in 2009.
"When we consulted the public back in 2009 we were fairly confident that
the funding would be made available," said EA spokesman Barry Russell.
"Now with the changes in government funding we had our capital
expenditure reduced by 27%.
"Also, the government has brought in partnership funding so we are now
looking to develop the partnerships that will secure the money needed."
The original proposals dating from 2009 are shown below:
The Environment Agency’s LTFRMS proposal includes spending some £300m of
public money building three flood diversion channels
(Reach 3 route), improving
some existing river weir structures, providing some
localised protection for groups of houses and a
range of other ways of managing the floodplain.
Extract from the LTFRMS Environment Agency Consultation response
document (July 2010)
Lower Thames Strategy Response: Bathymetric surveys of the
river bed have been
carried out over the past few years and have provided evidence
of the dynamic erosion
and deposition of sediment within the River Thames. These
bathymetric surveys have
shown that historical dredging only increases channel capacity
temporarily as the River
Thames silts up again and this is before climate change is
taken into account. Dredging
does not provide sufficient capacity to reduce flood flows due
to the huge volume of water
The Environment Agency published the Lower Thames
Strategy Consultation (September 2009). Unfortunately the Jubilee River
further upstream (the main element of the £110m MWEFAS project
that opened in 2002) is still unable to carry
its design capacity (215 cumecs). Design and construction failures
resulted in £5m repair costs and a £2.5m out-of-court settlement. The Myrke Embankment in Datchet is
rapidly degrading yet again despite a £1.3m rebuild in 2004, and local watercourses are in
desperate need of maintenance. For over ten years the River Thames has not
been dredged for flood defence purposes. I have no confidence that the
Environment Agency will maintain the water courses that they are responsible
for........
My view is that in order to properly understand the
Environment Agency LTFRMS proposal it is preferable to be aware of the history
and consequences of the MWEFAS project (renamed Jubilee River in 2002).
Land and property near
the River Thames has suffered from serious
flooding for many years. In January 2003,
heavy rain brought flooding to many areas of
the River Thames downstream of Datchet. We
listened to public concern that more should
be done to address the issue of flooding and
have come up with a plan to reduce flood
risk in your area.
We have produced a draft
Flood Risk Management (FRM) strategy for the
Lower Thames from Datchet to Teddington. It
sets out our preferred option for managing
the risk of flooding in the area in the
future. We would like to suggest a combined
approach to reduce the risk of flooding.
This document presents the studies we have
carried out, the options we have considered
and explains how we have arrived at our
preferred option.
We are working with and
involving people and communities that have
experienced flooding or are at risk of
flooding in this area. We would like to
share the findings of our studies with you,
so that you can tell us what you think. We
welcome your views and comments, and we will
take them into account in our final strategy
for Government approval in 2010.
The Environment
Agency has extended the deadline for responses to
its Lower Thames Strategy consultation for a further
two weeks, until 18 December.
The Agency said that the extension was as a
result of much interest from local residents and
community groups.
To date more than 2,000 people have attended the
public exhibitions held across the Lower Thames area
since October to find out what the flood plans,
which aim to reduce the risk of flooding to more
than 15,000 homes and businesses along the Lower
Thames,mean to them and to make comments that will
help finalise the strategy. Residents, local groups
and business owners are still being urged to
register their opinions on the website
www.environment-agency.gov.uk/lts.
Innes Jones, Area Manager for the Environment
Agency, said:
“We have had a fantastic response so far, and it
is great to see a large number of local people
taking an interest in their community and giving us
such valuable feedback. All responses from the
community are taken on board and will help to
finalise the strategy before we submit it to Defra.
“Each option in the consultation has been assessed
against a range of economic, environmental and
social factors to ensure the best solution for
everyone. I hope that those who have not managed to
comment will take this extra opportunity to visit
our website, email or put their views in writing and
tell us what they think. This strategy will play a
major role in addressing the concerns of the
thousands of people who live with the risk of
flooding.”
Currently 15,000 residential properties within
the Lower Thames floodplain from Datchet to
Teddington are at risk of flooding from the River
Thames in a 1% annual chance event.
The Lower Thames Flood Risk Management Strategy
will tackle the risk of flooding to these properties
within this area - one of the areas of highest flood
risk in England.
The Environment Agency’s recommendations include
building three flood diversion channels, improving
some existing river weir structures, providing some
localised protection for groups of houses and a
range of other ways of managing the floodplain.The
public consultation documents are available in
public libraries and local authority offices, or on
the Lower Thames Strategy webpage.The strategy is
available for consultation online at
www.environment-agency.gov.ul/lts until 18
December. Comments sent to
lts@environment-agency.gov.uk will also be taken
into consideration, together with written comments
sent to the project team at Swift House, Frimley
Business Park, Camberley, Surrey, GU16 7SQ.
The Environment Agency has published the Lower Thames
Strategy Consultation (September 2009)
This consultation closed 18 December 2009.
Unfortunately the Jubilee River (the main element of the £110m MWEFAS project
opened in 2002) is still unable to carry
its design capacity (215 cumecs). The Myrke Embankment in Datchet is
rapidly degrading yet again despite a £1.3m rebuild in 2004, and local watercourses are in
desperate need of maintenance. For over ten years the River Thames has not
been dredged for flood defence purposes.
