Agenda item

To consider a report (copy attached) form the Senior Engineer, Flood Risk Management, which seeks the Committee discuss whether the Council is meeting its statutory and discretionary obligations with respect to flood risk management and protection.

9.35am- 10.15am

The Lead Member for Public Realm introduced the Senior Engineer’s (Flood Risk Management) report (previously circulated) on the Local Flood Management Strategy and Flood Related Matters.  He outlined the background to the Strategy’s production.  The Welsh Government (WG) had recently formally approved the Council’s Local Flood Risk Management Strategy, the next step would be to deliver the Strategy.  A number of the actions and measures identified were already being delivered or had been earmarked for delivery during the next financial year.  Discussions were underway with Welsh Government (WG) with a view to securing additional funding towards some of the schemes.

Members were advised that as the Natural Resources Wales' (NRW) Coastal Flooding Review had been inconclusive with respect to the severity of December 2013's coastal flooding event, the Council had commissioned consultants to undertake further work in this area.  The resulting report had thrown up some unexpected conclusions.  Consequently the report had been shared with both NRW and WG to seek their views on the conclusions drawn.  Dependent upon both stakeholders' views on the consultants' conclusions, the Council may challenge the consultants' findings in due course.  Members therefore asked that the consultants' report be presented to the Committee, along with the NRW and WG's observations on it, at its next meeting in January 2015.  Upon finalisation and agreement of the consultants' report a further assessment of the entire coastline's flood defences and their adequacy would be undertaken by the Council.  Nevertheless, no cast iron guarantee could ever be given that flooding would never happen if the event of an extreme weather occurred.

The Senior Engineer (Flood Risk Management) answered individual member’s questions relating to individual floodgates in the Rhyl and Prestatyn areas and advised that there were particular concerns with respect to gaps in the sea wall in the Barkby Beach and Nova Centre areas of Prestatyn.  He undertook to look again at these gaps to ensure that every effort was made to minimise the risk of severe flooding incidents.  It was confirmed that discussions had already taken place to ensure that the any risk posed to the refurbished Nova Centre from coastal flooding was mitigated.  Further work was required in relation to developing better secondary flood defences in the Splash Point/Garford Road area of Rhyl.  This was subject to further discussions with the WG in relation to funding.

Members enquired on the viability of collecting Christmas trees early in the new year and using them to assist the process of rebuilding sand dunes in the Barkby Beach area.  A similar exercise had proved extremely successful in previous years. 

In response to further questions it was confirmed that the definition of flood risk areas for the purpose of the European Flood Risk Regulations differed greatly from the local definition of 'Flood Risk Areas' for planning applications and emergency planning purposes.  This anomaly should not affect the area’s chances of drawing down money for flood mitigation work.  It was confirmed that the WG was currently changing the way in which community flood risk areas were being developed and that no inland areas in Denbighshire had been identified as areas that may need to be 'returned to the sea' with a view to mitigating the risk of widespread coastal flooding.  The only areas in the county which had been identified were coastal sand dune areas.  These particular areas were quite good at rebuilding themselves through natural processes.

The coastal flooding strategy was managed closely and amended on a regular basis due to climate changes, changes to weather patterns and also to take account of possible projects taking place along the coast and out at sea e.g. the potential development of a tidal lagoon for energy production.

The majority of funding for Phase 3 of the West Rhyl Coastal Defence Scheme had now been secured and work was scheduled to commence on site in January 2015.  Regional work on flood risk management was crucial, as flooding does not recognise county nor national boundaries.

With respect to the Clwyd and Elwy Natural Flood Risk Management Projects members were advised that Cadwyn Clwyd had secured money to determine the most appropriate method of retaining water in upland areas for a longer period of time in order to alleviate the risk of flooding further downstream.  NRW had been leading on this work and officers had recently seen a copy of the draft report on the river Elwy catchment area.  Following detailed discussion the Committee:

Resolved: - that,

(i)  subject to actions being taken in response to the above points and observations, the Council was striving to meet its statutory and discretionary obligations with respect to flood risk management and protection;

(ii)  subject to the above observations, to endorse the flood risk management actions undertaken to date by the Council to manage the risk from flooding, particularly in response to the December 2013 coastal flood event; and

(iii) that the consultants' report, the 'Rhyl Coastal Defence Assessment', along with the Council, Welsh Government and Natural Resources Wales' observations on its findings, be presented to the Committee at its January 2015 meeting for detailed examination.