14669 NFS Cor Slip / Sig: 1 / Plate A Understanding the risks, empowering communities, building resilience: the national flood and coastal erosion risk management strategy for England Session: 2010-2012 Unnumbered Act paper Laid before Parliament 23/05/11 CORRECTION Correction required for the map on page 8, figure 3 - Main urban areas at risk of surface water flooding in England. Names of five of the indicative Flood Risk Areas have been amended to more accurately reflect the geographical areas at risk (Kingston Upon Hull and Haltemprice, South Essex, Medway, Liverpool & Sefton and Leicester Principal Urban Area). .)aerA nabrU lapicnirP retsecieL dna notfeS & loopreviL ,yawdeM ,xessE htuoS ,ecirpmetlaH dna lluH nopU notsgniK( ksir ta saera lacihpargoeg eht tcelfer yletarucca erom ot dednema neeb evah saerA ksiR doolF evitacidni eht fo evif fo semaN .dnalgnE ni gnidoolf retaw ecafrus fo ksir ta saera nabru niaM - 3 erugif ,8 egap no pam eht rof deriuqer noitcerroC NOITCERROC 11/50/32 tnemailraP erofeb diaL repap tcA derebmunnU 2102-0102 :noisseS dnalgnE rof ygetarts tnemeganam ksir noisore latsaoc dna doolf lanoitan eht :ecneiliser gnidliub ,seitinummoc gnirewopme ,sksir eht gnidnatsrednU A etalP / 1 :giS / pilS roC SFN 96641 14669 NFS Cor Slip / Sig: 1 / Plate B ECIFFO YRENOITATS EHT :NODNOL 1102 rebmetpeS Correction required, to properly recognise the sources of funding for land drainage works carried out by Internal Drainage Boards (IDBs), on page 32, 4th paragraph, on the 4th line. A correction from: IDBs are the land drainage authority within their districts and their functions include the supervision of land drainage, funded by landowners, and flood defence works on ordinary watercourses or other flood sources as requested by local authorities or the Environment Agency." To: IDBs are the land drainage authority within their districts and their functions include the supervision of land drainage, mainly funded by landowners and local authorities, and flood defence works on ordinary watercourses or other flood sources as requested by local authorities or the Environment Agency. .ycnegA tnemnorivnE eht ro seitirohtua lacol yb detseuqer sa secruos doolf rehto ro sesruocretaw yranidro no skrow ecnefed doolf dna ,seitirohtua lacol dna srenwodnal yb dednuf ylniam ,eganiard dnal fo noisivrepus eht edulcni snoitcnuf rieht dna stcirtsid rieht nihtiw ytirohtua eganiard dnal eht era sBDI :oT ".ycnegA tnemnorivnE eht ro seitirohtua lacol yb detseuqer sa secruos doolf rehto ro sesruocretaw yranidro no skrow ecnefed doolf dna ,srenwodnal yb dednuf ,eganiard dnal fo noisivrepus eht edulcni snoitcnuf rieht dna stcirtsid rieht nihtiw ytirohtua eganiard dnal eht era sBDI :morf noitcerroc A .enil 4 eht no ,hpargarap 4 ,23 egap no ,)sBDI( sdraoB eganiarD lanretnI yb tuo ht ht deirrac skrow eganiard dnal rof gnidnuf fo secruos eht esingocer ylreporp ot ,deriuqer noitcerroC September 2011 LONDON: THE STATIONERY OFFICE B etalP / 1 :giS / pilS roC SFN 96641 Understanding the risks, empowering communities, building resilience The national flood and coastal erosion risk management strategy for England Presented to Parliament pursuant to Section 7 of the Flood and Water Management Act 2010 © Crown copyright [2011] You may re-use this information (excluding logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/ or e-mail: [email protected]. Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned. Any enquiries regarding this document should be sent to us at enquiries@environment- agency.gov.uk or our National Customer Contact Centre, PO Box 544, Rotherham S60 1BY This publication is also available for download at www.official-documents.gov.uk Foreword Flooding and coastal erosion can have a devastating impact on communities. I saw this first- hand in my constituency during the floods of 2007 and we are reminded whenever events unfold, most recently in Cumbria in 2009 and Cornwall last winter. I have also seen for myself the destructive power of the sea in areas like North Norfolk and Lincolnshire, as treasured land and property along the coast is lost to erosion. Whilst we cannot fully tame the forces of nature we can better understand the risks we face and make ourselves more resilient as a society. The Pitt Review identified many lessons from the 2007 floods, and this national strategy, the first of its kind for England, marks an important milestone in taking forward Sir Michael’s report. Much has been achieved since 2007, with the Flood and Water Management Act, greater powers and clarified responsibilities for tackling local sources of flood risk, and a new role for lead local flood authorities in bringing partners together and making sure things get done. We have a National Flood Forecasting Centre, an enlarged and better trained national flood rescue capability, and we recently tested our new emergency response arrangements during the largest civil contingency exercise ever, Exercise Watermark. As a result of investment by all risk management authorities 180,000 households are now better protected than they were in 2008. But there is much more that can be done. This strategy provides the overarching framework for future action by all risk management authorities to tackle flooding and coastal erosion in England. It has been prepared by the Environment Agency with input from Defra, to ensure it reflects Government policy. Localism is at the heart of the new strategy, recognising that there is a limit to what Government and national bodies can achieve alone, and that national priorities are only part of the picture. An important role for Government remains, not least in channelling substantial investment from the national taxpayer to help pay for risk management activity around the country. We also need to make sure that consistent approaches are taken within each river catchment and coastal area. Issues need to be managed at the appropriate spatial scale, and we mustn’t simply move problems from one area to another. We cannot escape the fact that the way we manage flooding and coastal erosion risk has an enormous impact on the environment for better or worse. I am determined that we should improve the environment through managing flood and coastal erosion risk as well as avoiding or off-setting damage to protected habitats, which we are required to do by international obligations. This is not a question of prioritising birds over people, but working to protect people and the natural environment. The costs of doing this are relatively small but make a big difference in ensuring that we have a legacy of healthy ecosystems to sustain our well- being and, in many cases, important local economies. But if there is one thing we need to achieve in the coming years, it is to re-engage our communities in the risks they face and the choices that affect them. Our communities deserve greater licence to inform and indeed influence long-term approaches. We need to allow more flexibility to reflect local circumstances, and remove unnecessary barriers that may be preventing simple and sensible things being done. Work is underway to reflect on the lessons of the recent Coastal Pathfinders, so that we can better support our communities on the front line of coastal erosion. Allied to this, we mustn’t let local ambitions for protection and our investment plans be constrained by national budgets. Instead we will reform the way in which national funding is allocated to projects, to allow and encourage other sources of funding to come forward and supplement Government funding. In doing so, we move investment plans onto a more sustainable footing, and create the opportunity for as many communities as possible to enjoy the benefits that flood and coastal defences bring. The reforms aim to create a level playing field between all sources of flood risk, and coastal erosion, for the purposes of national i funding. Within this nationally consistent, benefit-led framework, local choices can be made about the balance between protecting inland and coastal areas, and between urban and rural areas. Choices can also be made locally about where the balance of funding comes from, or how to find savings, if national budgets cannot meet the full costs of every local priority. I am delighted to lay this national strategy for flood and coastal erosion risk management before Parliament, which I believe is much improved following the period of full public consultation. It represents an important step forward but is by no means the end of the story. Local risk management strategies, being prepared across the country, will make this national framework locally relevant and inform delivery plans in each area. This strategy also sits within an evolving policy context, with the emerging national planning policy framework and the forthcoming Natural Environment White Paper just two new aspects of the policy landscape that risk management authorities will need to operate within. In my time as Minister I have seen what can be achieved when communities and local partners work together to solve the problems they face. I have seen apparently insurmountable problems overcome by partners working together with a common purpose, pooling their energy and resources. I am therefore confident that by working together, within the common framework that this strategy provides, that as a society we can rise to the challenge of our changing climate and tackle the risks we face. Richard Benyon MP, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State ii Executive summary Flood and coastal erosion risk in England is expected to increase due to climate change and development in areas at risk. It is not possible to prevent all flooding or coastal erosion, but there are actions that can be taken to manage these risks and reduce the impacts on communities. This strategy builds on existing approaches to flood and coastal risk management and promotes the use of a wide range of measures to manage risk. Risk should be managed in a co-ordinated way within catchments and along the coast and balance the needs of communities, the economy and the environment. This strategy will form the framework within which communities have a greater role in local risk management decisions and sets out the Environment Agency’s strategic overview role in flood and coastal erosion risk management (FCERM). This approach is aligned with the recommendations made by Sir Michael Pitt in his review of the summer 2007 floods. The strategy encourages more effective risk management by enabling people, communities, business, infrastructure operators and the public sector to work together to: • ensure a clear understanding of the risks of flooding and coastal erosion, nationally and locally, so that investment in risk management can be prioritised more effectively; • set out clear and consistent plans for risk management so that communities and businesses can make informed decisions about the management of the remaining risk; • manage flood and coastal erosion risks in an appropriate way, taking account of the needs of communities and the environment; • ensure that emergency plans and responses to flood incidents are effective and that communities are able to respond effectively to flood forecasts, warnings and advice; • help communities to recover more quickly and effectively after incidents. The strategy shows how communities can be more involved in local flood and coastal erosion risk management. It also emphasises the need to balance national and local activities and funding. In setting out future approaches to FCERM, this strategy considers the level of risk and how it might change in the future, the risk management measures that may be used, roles and responsibilities, future funding and the need for supporting information. iii Contents 1 Introduction 1 1.1 What is flood and coastal erosion risk management? 2 1.2 Why has a strategy been produced? 2 1.3 Who is the strategy aimed at? 3 2 Flood and coastal erosion risk in England 5 2.1 Overview 5 2.2 Current flood and coastal erosion risks 5 2.3 Future changes to risk 10 3 Managing flood and coastal erosion risk 13 3.1 Strategic aims and objectives 13 3.2 Guiding principles 14 3.3 Achieving the objectives 17 4 Working together to protect people and property 29 4.1 Policy and the strategic overview of FCERM 29 4.2 Planning risk management 30 4.3 Implementing risk management measures 31 4.4 Other organisations involved in flood and coastal risk management 33 4.5 Skills and capabilities 34 5 Funding for flood and coastal erosion risk management 35 5.1 Approach to targeting Government resources 35 5.2 Capital investment in new and improved assets and systems 36 5.3 Maintenance of existing defence asset systems 38 5.4 Costs and benefits of FCERM measures 39 6 Reporting on the strategy and supporting information 41 6.1 Reporting on and reviewing the national strategy 41 6.2 Advice or guidance to help manage risks 41 References 42 Annex 1 Catchment flood management plan and shoreline management plan boundaries 44 Annex 2 FCERM - legal background, key supporting documents and reporting 47 Glossary 51 iv Table One: Extent of flood risk management systems in England 7 Table Two: FCERM reporting responsibilities 50 Figure One: Flood and coastal erosion risk management – overview 4 Figure Two: Percentage area of land at significant likelihood of river and sea flooding (Nafra 2010) 6 Figure Three: Main urban areas at risk of surface water flooding in England 8 Figure Four: Managing flood and coastal erosion risk – addressing likelihood and impacts 12 Figure Five: Managing flood and coastal erosion risks 13 Figure Six: FCERM strategies and plans and their relationship with other planning initiatives 20 Figure Seven: Example FCERM interventions and outcomes 25 Figure Eight: Funding streams of risk management authorities 40 Figure Nine: Catchment flood management plan boundaries 44 Figure Ten: Shoreline management plan boundaries 46 Figure Eleven: Pitt Review recommendations - key focus areas 48 v