Natural flood management scheme in Surrey to benefit from £25million investment provided by Government and Environment Agency

The ring-fenced funding, provided by the Government and the Environment Agency, will support natural flood management schemes across England that use techniques such as planting trees and creating wetlands to slow and store water to reduce the risk of flooding.

These schemes are also proven to improve air and water quality, provide habitats for wildlife and create green spaces for communities.

This new funding builds on the £15m natural flood management pilot programme which ran until 2021. Across the 60 pilot projects supported by this programme, the equivalent of 1.6 million cubic metres of water storage was created and 15,000 homes were better protected from flooding, while 4,000 hectares of habitat and 610 kilometres of river were improved and 100 hectares of woodland were planted.

The £25 million will also help harness the power of nature and support the Environment Agency’s FCERM (Flood Coast and Erosion Management) Strategy, which provides a longer-term vision of how we will create climate-resilient places and better protect and prepare homes and businesses from flooding and coastal change.

Environment Minister Rebecca Pow said: “Nature is an essential weapon in our armoury against flooding. Enhancing the natural landscape to slow rivers and hold flood water works hand-in-hand with the bricks and mortar protection we are building with our £5.2 billion flood programme.

“That is why we are driving investment to harness the power of nature. This approach not only reduces flood risk and helps tackle climate change, but it can also benefit water quality, restore habitats and boost biodiversity. Natural flood management is a win-win-win.”

Environment Agency chair Alan Lovell said: “In the face of a changing climate, and with the frequency and severity of flooding only likely to get worse, we need to act now.

“The pioneers who already work with nature-based solutions to achieve greater flood resilience give me hope. I am delighted this new Natural Flood Management Programme will be open to environmental groups, catchment partnerships, farmers, landowners, and local authorities to speed up more investment in natural flood management.

“Natural flood management gives us so many wider benefits and I look forward to seeing projects coming forward that also help to create habitats for wildlife, support better river quality, and sequester carbon.”

In the South East, recent and current natural flood management projects include the Dorking Natural Flood Management Scheme in Surrey.

The scheme costing £300,000, was one of the first NFM projects in the South East. The scheme was instigated after the Pipp Brook flooded due to its steep slopes.

The Environment Agency working in partnership with the Forestry Commission, succeeded in re-connecting the river channel to its original course; creating ‘wet woodland’ that has a benefit for biodiversity along with 30 leaky barriers to allow water to spill into the natural floodplain.

It has helped to create a more natural flow, which slows down the flow of water, stopping too much water flooding into the town. Ongoing research with the University of Surrey is assessing the effectiveness of these structures over time, which will help the design of similar schemes in the future.

The new funding is available to environmental non-governmental organisations, businesses, farmers, catchment partnerships, flood risk management authorities and community groups.

Successful projects will cover a large enough area to provide demonstrable flood risk benefits. The Environment Agency will manage the programme.

Expressions of interest are open from September 22 and will close on November 10. Projects will be delivered during 2024-27.

To find out more go to: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/natural-flood-management-programme.