The Calderdale Flood Action Plan is five years old this month and
to acknowledge this important milestone, the Environment Agency,
Calderdale Council and its partners are reflecting on key
successes since 2016.
Created following the floods of Boxing Day 2015, the plan aims to
reduce the impact of flooding and make the region more resilient
to climate change. Actions completed as part of the plan are also
part of the Environment Agency’s and partners plans to be
prepared for winter.
The plan is a ‘living document’ and enables organisations to plan
together effectively to achieve common goals. It is overseen by a
group called the Calderdale Flood Programme, which brings
together a range of partners including Calderdale Council, the
Environment Agency, Yorkshire Water, Network Rail, the Canal and
River Trust, local flood groups, the voluntary sector and
community groups. Progress to date has been strong, with
over 50 per cent of actions completed or nearing completion.
There are four themes of the Plan – Strengthening Defences,
Natural Flood Management, Resilient Infrastructure and Community
Resilience. The combined actions of these themes work together to
slow the flow of flood water and reduce flood risk along the
whole of the Calder Valley.
Jo Arnold, who leads on the Calderdale Flood Action Plan for the
Environment Agency, said:
It’s fantastic that The Calderdale Flood Action Plan is still an
invaluable living document five years after inception. The plan
outlines the work the partnership, communities and people have
delivered and will continue to deliver to reduce flood risk to
homes and businesses in the Calder Valley.
The Flood Action Plan is a great roadmap of how we and many other
organisations help better protect communities from flooding, and
shows what we are doing to prepare for whatever this winter may
bring. However, what is equally as important is that people check
their flood risk and sign up to flood warnings. Despite our
efforts, we cannot prevent all flooding. It’s vital everyone
knows the threat to them and how to keep loved ones,
property and possession safe.
Cllr Scott Patient, Calderdale Council’s Cabinet Member for
Climate Change and Resilience said:
In the five years since the launch of the Calderdale Flood Action
Plan we’ve seen some fantastic progress to help reduce the risk
of flooding in the borough. From major schemes to the efforts of
our incredible volunteers, the completion of every action has
made a difference and helped increase our resilience to flood
events.
Unfortunately, our changing climate makes extreme weather events
more likely to occur. Alongside specific flood reduction schemes
as part of the Flood Action Plan, we’re also leading the way in
our fight against climate change – work that requires significant
effort and a cultural and behavioural shift.
We’ve come a long way since the launch of the Flood Action Plan,
but this work isn’t slowing down. We’ll continue to work together
with our partners and volunteers to develop our flood response
work, alongside our commitment to the climate agenda, to do all
we can to protect our communities from the impacts of flooding.
One key achievement since the creation of the plan has been the
completion of the £41m flood defence scheme at Mytholmroyd, which
now better protects over 400 homes and businesses.
The scheme included the construction of new, raised and improved
flood walls, the relocation of Caldene Bridge, widening of the
river channel at key locations and floodproofing of many
buildings next to the River Calder and Cragg Brook.
The Environment Agency has also completed a £4 million repair
programme of work after Storm Ciara in February 2020. This
included the demolition of Shade Chapel, Todmorden, which was
badly damaged by the floods, reducing the risk of flooding to 250
properties. Other emergency work included repairing damaged flood
defences throughout the valley and stone/shoal clearance removal
from river channels.
Under natural flood management (NFM), over 20 partners are
working together on an NFM programme which has so far seen 600
leaky dams installed at Hardcastle Crags, 112,245 trees planted
at Gorpley Reservoir and over 700 hectares of moorland planted
with sphagnum moss to help hold back water and slow its flow,
reducing flood risk further down the valley.
Infrastructure is also more resilient now with the relocation of
11 substations and three more to be relocated next year.
Good progress has also been made on community resilience through
our teams of volunteer flood wardens and improvements to the
Environment Agency’s flood warning service and sirens across the
valley. There are 32 flood warnings that cover 7,577 properties.
Over 25 of these warnings now have a take up rate of 80 per cent.
The infographics which have been created to show the progress of
the Calderdale Flood Action Plan five years on can be found
at: https://eyeoncalderdale.com/FAP-5-years-on
The full plan can be found at www.eyeoncalderdale.com/flood-action-plan
