Flooding risk will affect 1 in 4 English properties

[Salted_Peanut]

We can all look forward to flash floods and more general flooding impacting more of our homes.

Financial Times said:

One in four properties in England will be at risk from flooding by mid-century … The findings come after Storm Bert wreaked havoc in parts of Wales, Scotland and England in November.

What do you think about the government’s advice to prepare for flooding?

Gov.uk said:

Protect your property
Before a flood happens you can make changes to your property to reduce the damage flooding can do, for example:
• laying tiles instead of carpets
• moving electrical sockets higher up the wall
• fitting non-return valves to stop flood water entering your property through the drains
• getting flood protection products, for example flood doors or self closing air bricks

[Biker 1]

Thank fk I live halfway up a gentle hill!!

[Lotobear]

But I thought that Ed is going to fix all of this by 2030?

[Nemophilist]

Advising people against paving over their gardens or putting down astro turf (it really doesnt drain as well as real grass) would also be a good idea.

[Spare tyre]

We looked at a property in 2017, started to buy it and a chance convo with an old boy we knew alerted us to a small but potential flood risk. We pulled out

About 4 weeks ago, the place flooded. I don’t know if this is the first time, but we know it did - bullet dodged

We moved into this current place, with flooding in mind. We are higher than a lot of surrounding areas so it will be localised only, not deep enough to come into the house

That said, we have a lot of oak trees here, so lots of leaves etc. the gulley drains did used to get a regular cleaning, since covid times, the drains have been solidly blocked with mulch, they just don’t deal with rain water

As a result the road outside our house gets a good inch or two of rain forming when it rains

The locals congregate on our driveway when waiting for the bus as they just get sprayed continually when in flood. We don’t mind too much as it’s mostly pensioners and polite college kids

The road between here and the next village (where I grew up) has ditches all along it.

I have strong memories of these being manually dug out etc each year as there would be piles of silt all along thr far bank with the odd hubcap etc sticking out

Now you can not even see the ditches and the brambles have grown to the edge of the road, with wing mirror marks where the bus passes through.

This road is again, only 2-3 inches deep when it rains but you get idiots driving on the wrong side, aqua planing etc, a real danager and we avoid it at certain times

I have been onto everyone possible about it, nothing is done, however the local town does have all sorts of rainbows painted on the wobbly pavements

[Getragdogleg]

Our local council has just allowed a few hundred houses to be built on the marshes just down the road from my house.

Hopefully they will be alright.

[Tom8]

Salted_Peanut said:

We can all look forward to flash floods and more general flooding impacting more of our homes.

Financial Times said:

One in four properties in England will be at risk from flooding by mid-century … The findings come after Storm Bert wreaked havoc in parts of Wales, Scotland and England in November.

What do you think about the government’s advice to prepare for flooding?

Gov.uk said:

Protect your property
Before a flood happens you can make changes to your property to reduce the damage flooding can do, for example:
• laying tiles instead of carpets
• moving electrical sockets higher up the wall
• fitting non-return valves to stop flood water entering your property through the drains
• getting flood protection products, for example flood doors or self closing air bricks

Especially all those homes they keep building on flood plains. As someone else has said, also the uber council plastic grass. Perhaps if government cleaned drains and dredged rivers we would see this isn't really a problem but then that would detract from the religion of the global warming. Dredging and drain cleaning can't be taxed.

[normalbloke]

Spare tyre said:

I have been onto everyone possible about it, nothing is done, however the local town does have all sorts of rainbows painted on the wobbly pavements

Boom. There it is.

[Terminator X]

Why aren't houses built in flood zones just raised up a level eg make the GF the garage and then the proper GF is just at 1F level with stairs to access.

Also if we want less flooding then probably stop getting rid of trees / woods and turning it all to hardstanding.

TX.

[Spare tyre]

normalbloke said:

Spare tyre said:

I have been onto everyone possible about it, nothing is done, however the local town does have all sorts of rainbows painted on the wobbly pavements

Boom. There it is.

I have a bee in my bonnet over the crossing patrols, other various services that I would consider essential being cut, but various vanity projects getting funds. In Hampshire we are having our crossing patrols cut, but the council are running poster campaigns saying their crossing patrols for school kids are LGBT friendly. Great stuff but I would prefer a crossing patrols rather than a poster about a non existent one.

I understand money comes from different pots but it’s crazy

[Spare tyre]

Between Newbury and reading (I think) around 2010 I remember some houses being built on marsh area. Usually each house was kind of raised on a mound / stilts can’t remeber which but thinking it would be a nervous wait waiting for the first floods

I lived in a block of flats in Newbury in 2007 and remeber the flooding / helping some local friends, awful

[dandarez]

Government? Always great on giving advice and fixing sweet f a. Rivers and roads spring to mind immediately, and a hundred other things.

I'm old enough to recall the Gov. advice given when nuclear annihilation was imminent - 'get under your kitchen table!'
If you want a real good laugh, have a look at old Home Office and Gov stuff from the 60s and 70s.

What's this guy doing?

He's building protection from Nuclear attack in his home for his family. He got a hernia with all that lifting, but hey ho.
It was suggested you have enough food etc for 2 weeks. If you needed a st during that time (if you hadn't already shat yourself that is!), advice was to punch a hole through a dining chair and put a bucket underneath it.

Just ignore ALL the crap given out, and get on with your life.
Believe me, it's too short as it is.

[otolith]

Tom8 said:

As someone else has said, also the uber council plastic grass.

Taste apart, I would have thought that as hard landscaping goes plastic grass is relatively permeable - it's usually sitting on top of crushed rock or gravel.

[Chrisgr31]

otolith said:

Taste apart, I would have thought that as hard landscaping goes plastic grass is relatively permeable - it's usually sitting on top of crushed rock or gravel.

Crushed rock that has been heavily compacted and therefore has no gaps for water to drain into in it

[Chrisgr31]

As others have said many of the issues here are caused directly or indirectly by local and central government.

When it rains the water has to go somewhere. In light rain much of it will fall on unsurfaced ground and be absorbed but in heavy rain it runs off. On surfaced land it all runs off. All the water that runs off needs to go somewhere. Many highway drains are blocked and many local ditches have been filled in. So the water heads to the lowest point and that’s been built on!

[otolith]

Chrisgr31 said:

otolith said:

Taste apart, I would have thought that as hard landscaping goes plastic grass is relatively permeable - it's usually sitting on top of crushed rock or gravel.

Crushed rock that has been heavily compacted and therefore has no gaps for water to drain into in it

We've got an area of slate chippings on top of heavily compacted MOT1. It retains no water. And the point is that it's exactly the same base you would use to lay other forms of hard landscaping. I should think that paving, concrete, resin bound aggregates, or tarmac are far less permeable than fake grass.

[andy43]

1 in 4? bks.
Will it help if I pay more tax?

ETA

FT said:

One in four properties in England will be at risk from flooding by mid-century, the Environment Agency has said, after updating its modelling techniques to factor in the effects of climate change. 

Ah. Modelling of climate change. Nothing to see here apart from the sky falling in.

Edited by andy43 on Tuesday 17th December 12:49

[normalbloke]

dandarez said:

Government? Always great on giving advice and fixing sweet f a. Rivers and roads spring to mind immediately, and a hundred other things.

I'm old enough to recall the Gov. advice given when nuclear annihilation was imminent - 'get under your kitchen table!'
If you want a real good laugh, have a look at old Home Office and Gov stuff from the 60s and 70s.

What's this guy doing?

He's building protection from Nuclear attack in his home for his family. He got a hernia with all that lifting, but hey ho.
It was suggested you have enough food etc for 2 weeks. If you needed a st during that time (if you hadn't already shat yourself that is!), advice was to punch a hole through a dining chair and put a bucket underneath it.

Just ignore ALL the crap given out, and get on with your life.
Believe me, it's too short as it is.

That’s spooky. I’ve just had (today) my ‘What to do in a radiation emergency’ booklet through my door.

[andy43]

Don’t panic. We have advice on hand.
https://www.preparingforemergencies.co.uk/

[POIDH]

andy43 said:

1 in 4? bks.
Will it help if I pay more tax?

ETA

FT said:

One in four properties in England will be at risk from flooding by mid-century, the Environment Agency has said, after updating its modelling techniques to factor in the effects of climate change.?

Ah. Modelling of climate change. Nothing to see here apart from the sky falling in.

Edited by andy43 on Tuesday 17th December 12:49

I think the change is this huge increase in intensity of rainfall, the resulting surface water flow and 'peak' levels in rivers after rain storms. You don't have to be next to sea or a river, or on flat land for the risk of flooding to be very real and increasing.