The admission came this week as the proposed scheme for Leven Carrs was finally scrapped, following a public protest and a detailed scientific analysis of the programme.

The news has also been welcomed by council chiefs who joined local people in mounting a long fight against the proposals.

But officials insist the change of heart is not a setback to their wider work to draw up a flood risk management programme for the River Hull.

Craig McGarvey, the agency’s Yorkshire area manager, told the Driffield Post the decision had been taken following a more detailed analysis of the area, which showed the benefits of the programme were “very limited”.

He said the only benefit from the plans would be that less agricultural land would be flooded.

Meanwhile more homes, possibly as many as 20, in the area around Leven Carrs would have been threatened by flooding than the six previously envisaged under the scheme.

And he added: “When we looked at it more carefully, we found very little downstream benefit at all.”

The plans were also met by widespread political and public opposition when they were put to the public at a packed meeting in Beeford in November 2008.

And Mr McGarvey conceded the agency had not appreciated the strength of local feeling on the subject, adding: “We probably misjudged what we thought would be a relatively small issue.”

News of the agency’s decision has been warmly welcomed by East Riding of Yorkshire Council leaders, who joined local people in opposing the scheme.

Council leader Coun Stephen Parnaby said: “The council is delighted that the Environment Agency has dropped proposals for Leven Carrs which will also come as a great relief to local people after a long-running campaign.”

And chief executive Nigel Pearson said the decision was “great news” and that the authority would be continuing to work with the agency on revised proposals.

But he added: “It is important that everybody is fully engaged in the process as there remain issues still to be resolved.”

Attention now turns to the agency’s new proposals for flood risk management, which are expected to be put out to public consultation in April.

Mr McGarvey said no other lands in the Driffield area had been earmarked as flood storage sites.

Meanwhile the future of four pumping stations in our region – which had previously been deemed “uneconomical” – will also form part of the discussion.

Mr McGarvey said the stations at Wilfholme, Hempholme, Great Culvert and Tickton would still be maintained under the new proposals, with the only issue being how their continuing upkeep would be funded.

He insisted: “Turning them off is not an option.”

He added that the agency is currently carrying out research into the effectiveness of dredging the waterways at Burstwick.