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The Environment Agency has submitted plans for a new tidal flood defence scheme in Hull. The project is expected to cost £42 million and will bolster flood defences along a seven to eight kilometre stretch of the River Humber.
If it receives planning permission from Hull City Council, the Humber Hull Frontage Improvement Scheme will provide better protection for 113,000 homes and businesses that are at risk of tidal flooding.
Among the areas that will see improved defences under the plans are Albert Dock, St Andrew’s Quay and Victoria Dock Village.
BAM Nuttall and Mott MacDonald have formed a joint venture – BMM JV – and have been named as the contractor for the project.
Project manager at the Environment Agency Helen Tattersdale described the scheme as “vital”. She explained that the investment from the government has allowed the agency to assess a large portion of the current flood defence walls.
Ms Tattersdale added that the aim was to “come up with a scheme that will better protect the city both now and in the future taking into account climate change”.
An article for the Guardian earlier this year highlighted why Hull is so vulnerable to flooding. In fact, around 90 per cent of the city stands below the high tide line, which means extreme weather events can easily lead to flooding, as happened in 2007 and 2013.
Lynne Frostick, emeritus professor of geography and an adviser to the Environment Agency, told the newspaper that there are a number of reasons why Hull is so vulnerable to flooding.
She explained there’s a risk of groundwater flooding, as well as the fact that the city is at risk from the waters of the North Sea. And then there’s rainfall. “Hull is like a basin with the taps on full if it’s raining hard [with] very few overflows,” Ms Frostick asserted.
The Hull Daily Mail revealed that in some locations along the River Humber, new concrete walls would be constructed on top of the existing defences.
If planning approval is granted, work is scheduled to begin by Christmas this year and to be completed by the end of 2020, the news provider added.
Given that the proposals have been amended following a consultation with local landowners, residents and other interested organisations such as Natural England, the Marine Management Organisation and Hull City Council, it’s hoped that they’ll receive the approval they need to progress.
The Guardian noted that although the new flood defences would go some way to reducing the risk of flooding in the city, the Environment Agency has also suggested that residents and businesses consider fitting property-level protection as well.
This includes the likes of anti-flood doors, air bricks, sumps and pumps, and non-return valves. However, this has not been well received by many, who cite the high individual cost of such measures as a barrier to their widespread adoption.
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