Plans to spend over £430,000 on flood gates and doors for 63 properties in Hove and Portslade are a ‘sticking plaster’

20 March 2018

Local Green Councillors have called for better, long-term flood risk planning for the city, following news that plans to install flood gates and doors at 63 properties in Hove and Portslade cost around £430,000. [1]

A report going to a meeting of Environment, Transport and Sustainability Committee today (20th March) identifies the gates and doors as “the only option…considered by BHCC to help mitigate the issue of surface water flood risk […] and as an alternative to the only other option of sandbag deployment.” [2]

However Greens have criticised the Labour Council for failing to look at longer term measures, pointing to the impact of climate change on the likelihood of increased flooding events. Brighton and Hove ranked 8th in an Environment Agency list of ten cities where more than 30,000 people are at risk of flooding.

Green Councillor Leo Littman, spokesperson for Environment, Transport and Sustainability, commented:

“The cost of protecting 63 properties in Hove and Portslade from flooding is £430,000. That’s an average of nearly £7,000 per property. The money will mitigate against ‘extreme rainfall events’ in Hove and Portslade – areas which have experienced repeated flooding, with drains unable to cope with the volume of rainwater.

“Whilst it’s essential to protect households vulnerable to this flooding, spending hundreds of thousands of pounds applying sticking plaster solutions will hardly be a sustainable option going forward. Due to ongoing climate change, we live in a world where what Meteorologists call ‘100 year flood events’, now occur on average every 80 years. In parts of Hove and Portslade alone, floods have occurred almost every other year since 1990.  As climate change bites, this frequency will only become greater.

 

“To prevent the situation from becoming even more dire, the Government and local Council should be looking at the wider picture. This means better investment in our environment teams, plans to decarbonise our energy, transport, food, and manufacturing sectors. Work to prevent flooding and curb environmental damage now will save money and livelihoods down the line. Instead, a lack of joined up thinking from the Labour Council will continue to cost our city and our residents.”

 

[1] Brighton & Hove City Council Environment, Transport and Sustainability Committee March 20th: Agenda Item 71 ‘Central hove and Portslade Property Level Scheme’:
“The cost of the scheme is £430,000. An allocation of £253,000 is to be provided by the Southern Regional Flood and Coastal Committee (SRFCC) Local Levy, pending approval from the Environment Agency. The remaining £177,000 will be funded by the City Council’s Flood Protection Surface Water Management Grant.”

[2] As above, pg. 219: The installation of PLP measures is the only option that has been considered by BHCC to help mitigate the issue of surface water flood risk within the area of Hove and Portslade.”

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