Options on flood protection

PEOPLE in Uckfield the first town in the south to be hit by last year s flooding together with those from surrounding parishes, are invited to air their views on possible flood defence options at a public meeting next week.

The Environment Agency, East Sussex County Council and Wealden District Council are working together to host the public meeting on Thursday to illustrate and discuss realistic options to improve flood defence standards.

The meeting will look at ways to improve flood defence standards in the Uckfield area as part of a wider strategy for the Uck and Ouse valleys. It will begin at 7.30pm at Uckfield Civic Centre.

Since the flooding, the Environment Agency and its partners in East Sussex County Council and Wealden District Council have carried out a considerable amount of work repairing defences and improving the flood warning system, said area manager Peter Midgley.

We have also been completing emergency plans for the future - all this work is essential as even where it is possible to increase the standard of flood defence there are areas of Buxted, Uckfield and other villages which lie in the river floodplain.

In these areas there will always be a flood risk, he added.

The misery and devastation caused by the flooding is still with us and will continue to have serious repercussions for the businesses and families of Uckfield and the Uck valley, said Mr Midgley.

The meeting will give people the opportunity to view and comment on the realistic options which could be used to increase the standard of defence in Uckfield.

The average time to design and construct a major flood defence scheme is 10 years.

The realistic options on show and for discussion include:

l Increasing the existing channel capacity: Under this option, the proposal is to reconstruct the river channel enabling a larger volume of floodwater to pass through the town.

l Upstream flood storage: By providing storage for the floodwater approaching the town, it would be possible to reduce peak river flows.

l Diversion of floodwaters: A tunnel bored beneath the town or an additional channel cut through the valley would provide extra river capacity.

l Reinstatement of the floodplain: This would involve removal of buildings from the floodplain to reduce flood hazard.

People will have the opportunity to view the exhibitions and discuss issues with technical staff from the County Council, Wealden District Council and the Environment Agency. The meeting will start with short presentations followed by the opportunity to ask the panel questions about the presentations, exhibitions and the future.

Work on options to improve defences in Barcombe, Buxted, Lewes and other affected communities in the Ouse valley continues.