Tag Archives: environment

Groundwater flood resilience South Oxford

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Project Groundwater is seeking views from people in South Oxford who have experienced groundwater flooding. The insights of local residents will help the project understand how resilient the community is currently and what might be done to make it more resilient. The survey questionnaire can be found here. People who respond have the chance to qualify for a free flood resilience survey. It is open to residents in New Hinksey and Grandpont. There will be a public drop in at South Oxford Community Centre on 20 November, 4-7pm.

OFA has been working with Project Groundwater in helping set up a flood action group in South Oxford. The project is a government funded initiative managed by Bucks County Council which is working with a number of communities affected by groundwater. It has published 7 podcasts so far, most recently on insurance and on natural flood management techniques, which are worth a listen.

Catchment saturated after record rain

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The Environment Agency has issued a report giving details of the exceptional rainfall in the Thames catchment in September and the consequences of this. It makes sobering reading. The capacity of soils to absorb more water has been reduced to virtually zero resulting in high river flows. The rising chalk groundwater aquifers are untypical for this time of year.

The report summary says:

Thames area received 193mm of rainfall in September, 317% of the long term average (LTA); making it the wettest month since records began in 1871. Following the high rainfall, soil moisture deficits (SMDs) were reduced to zero and this resulted in high effective rainfall of 50mm (LTA is 5mm). Monthly mean flows increased at all our sites and 4 measured their highest ever September flows since site records began. Due to the heavy rainfall, the seasonal declining trend of groundwater levels reversed at the majority of our indicator sites in September, which is earlier than normal.

This map of soil water deficit (i.e. the available capacity in the soil to absorb more moisture) shows the situation graphically. The long term average is 88mm meaning we typically enter winter with some capacity in the system to absorb rainfall. Not this year,

This is Flood Awareness Week. If you’re concerned about potential flooding there is good advice on the government website about how to prepare for and protect against flooding. The EA report is the Monthly water situation report: Thames Area.

Flood Action Week 2024

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Next week, 14-20 October, is Flood Action Week when the government will be raising awareness of flood risk and what we can do about it. Being prepared for flooding will reduce the impact, even if you only do a few basic things. Making your home flood resilient can, the government says, reduce the costs of repairs by up to 73%. Advice about what to do if you are at risk of flooding is available here.

Apart from protecting homes and businesses look out for flooding on roads and don’t drive through flood water. Most of those who die as a result of flooding in the UK do so because they tried to drive through a flood. Don’t chance it.

Take steps now to make sure you are as prepared and protected as possible.

Symposium delegates visit South Oxford

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Around 30 delegates to a British Hydrological Society (BHS) symposium in Oxford took part in a field trip to South Oxford on 24 September. Oxford Flood Alliance member Simon Collings, Richard Harding of the Environment Agency and David Macdonald, hydrogeologist and South Oxford resident, co-hosted the visit, which they helped design.

The delegates had spent two days discussing developments in flood modelling and forecasting in the UK and internationally. Predicting the impacts of flood hazards is complex and takes into account many elements. These include the nature of the catchment, the ground conditions, groundwater levels, surface-water runoff, volume and intensity of rainfall, and sewer infrastructure.

Researchers are working to improve our understanding of each of these components and build integrated models to help better represent what happens during an event. The field visit provided an opportunity to learn about a specific flood-affected community, the measures being taken to reduce flood risk, and to think about the future application of some of the monitoring and forecasting tools presented at the symposium.

One topic of discussion was groundwater monitoring. In South Oxford this is currently very limited, with scope to improve data collection and potential benefits in using river data to indicate the likelihood of groundwater-related flooding. Some work is about to start on this with support from Project Groundwater, a government-funded initiative aiming to fill some of the gaps in our understanding of groundwater flooding. OFA is currently working with Project Groundwater to set up a flood group in the South Oxford area.

Abingdon Road 7 January 2024

Flood alert issued for Thames and tributaries

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The Environment Agency has now issued a flood alert for the whole of the Thames from it’s source down to Twyford. The flood alert for Oxford, including areas between Wolvercote down to and including Radley and Jericho, reads:.

Property flooding is not currently expected. River levels are rising on the River Thames as a result of heavy rainfall over the weekend and earlier this week. Therefore, flooding of low lying land and roads is expected today, Wednesday 25/09/2024. Further rainfall is forecast over the next 24-48 hours. We expect river levels to continue rising slowly over the next few days. We are monitoring the situation. Our staff are managing weirs on the River Thames to reduce flood risk. Avoid using low lying footpaths near local watercourses. Go to the ‘River and Sea levels in England’ webpage for current river levels. This message will be updated this afternoon, 25/09/2024, or as the situation changes.

15 July planning meeting will decide OFAS planning application

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We now have formal confirmation that the Oxford Flood Alleviation Scheme will be decided by Oxfordshire County Council Planing and Regulation Committee on 15 July. The officers report recommends approval of the scheme. Copies of the agenda and the officer’s report area available online here.

The 160 page report includes a detailed review of all aspects relevant to the planning application which the committee needs to consider. The full text of the recommendation to support is as follows:

The application has been considered against the development plan, taking account of material considerations including statutory and non-statutory consultation responses and public representations. It is recommended that, subject to the application first being referred to the Secretary of State to consider
whether he wishes to call it in for his own determination and to conditions to be determined by the Head of Strategic Planning, including those listed in Annex 1, and the signing of a Section 106 Agreement to secure 30 years Habitat Management and Monitoring Plan for offsite Biodiversity Net Gain and a monitoring fee, the application is approved.

Oxford Flood Alliance will be at the planning meeting and expects to address the committee. We very much hope they will approve the application. This is the culmination of ten years of work on the scheme. If planning consent is granted it will leave only one further hurdle to clear, approval of the Compulsory Purchase Order by the new Secretary of State at DEFRA, Steve Reed. A public inquiry into the CPO concluded in January this year but a decision on the inspectors report was delayed by the calling of the general election. We hope approval will be given in the next couple of months.

County ecologist supports OFAS biodiversity plan

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Beccy Micklem, Landscape and Nature Recovery Team Leader at Oxfordshire County Council has confirmed that she is now satisfied the OFAS scheme can meet its targets in relation to biodiversity net gain. This follows the submission of ‘letters of comfort’ by the Environment Agency and three landowners confirming that land is available to provide offsite biodiversity compensation.

Ms Micklem’s updated response to the case officer says: ‘Following delivery of off-site habitat creation, the scheme will result in net gains of 11.24% area habitats, 11.66% hedgerows, and 15.22% watercourses. Provision of letters of comfort from landowners with whom the applicant is engaging with regards delivery of offsite BNG (Blenheim Estate, the Earth Trust and Oxford City Council) have recently been submitted, providing increased certainty that the necessary provision of offsite BNG will be deliverable.
Should you be minded to grant planning permission, a number of planning conditions and obligations will be needed to secure measures to conserve biodiversity and deliver a net gain.’

The document goes on to set out the specific conditions which should be attached to planning consent. This would appear to unblock the final obstacle to the scheme securing planning permission. We are hoping the application will now go to the 3 June meeting of the County Council planning committee.

The updated response and the letters of comfort are on the County planning portal.

Reducing flood risk by improving biodiversity

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Can improving biodiversity in Oxfordshire contribute to reducing flood risk? We think it can and there are conversations taking place across the county which could move this forward.

Oxfordshire County Council is developing a Local Nature Recovery Strategy (LNRS) for the county. This flows from the 2021 Environment Act and government commitments to improve biodiversity across the UK. Oxford Flood Alliance has been participating in consultation meetings on the strategy. We’re interested in ways natural flood management in the catchment can help reduce flood risk.

The County is using expert advice alongside wide-ranging public consultation. Twelve workshops were held in March involving more than 300 participants, including conservationists, farmers and local government officers. A survey of local people received 650 responses. Results of these engagement activities were presented in an online meeting on 9 May attended by more than 100 people.

What matters most?

The two issues that gained the widest support from these consultations were improving the quality of our rivers and freshwater habitats and stopping river pollution from sewage and agricultural runoff. Benefits expected to come from this included reduced flooding (number 2 for the workshops and 3 in the survey result). There was also strong support for an end to building in the floodplain.  Thames Water cleaning up its act is critical to reducing pollution.

Simon Collings from OFA asked how reducing flood risk would be reflected in the priorities for  the strategy. Chloe Edwards, who leads on this work at the County Council, said this would be through identifying habitat improvements which included natural flood management to benefit properties and/or farmland. She said she expected this to be a significant component of the strategy.

How could this reduce flood risk?

LNRS is not the only county-wide strategy for dealing with flood risk, or even the main one, but slowing runoff and improving storage upstream across the Thames catchment could help. To see an example of this in action watch this video about the Evenlode Catchment Project. (The section of flood management starts around 9 mins in.)

Another example is outlined in the Bernwood, Otmoor, and Ray (BOR) strategy developed by BBOWT. The River Ray drains into the Cherwell, which joins the Thames in Oxford. The BBOWT plan is to create wetland areas which would slow the discharge of water from the Ray into the wider river system. Working with farmers will be critical in achieving this. The LNRS will incorporate existing initiatives like these as building blocks.

What does it mean for OFAS?

These strategies are not an alternative to the Oxford Flood Alleviation Scheme but they could help as climate change takes effect. They are also important for the survival of our wildlife. Connecting up areas of surviving biodiversity is seen as a key objective of the strategy. The OFAS scheme is designed to deliver biodiversity net gain as well as flood protection. The project could contribute to the creation of more joined-up habitat across the county.

The LNRS is intended to provide a focus for government funding decisions and a basis for various actors to collaborate. But it won’t be the only game in town. It is envisaged that there will still be a lot of other activity taking place over and above what’s included in the strategy.

OFA featured in podcast about flood resilience

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Project Groundwater has just released the first of a new series of podcasts looking at different aspects of groundwater flooding. Episode 1 focuses on ‘resilience’ and features interviews with two academic experts on the topics, Dr Karen Potter and Dr Sarah Fitton, plus Simon Collings from Oxford Flood Alliance.

The term ‘resilience’ appears with increasing frequency in the literature about flooding, but what precisely is understood by this word is far from clear. It can mean a number of different things, and is often used to denote what is in fact a complex topic. Without being clear what we mean in any given context evaluating the success of actions to improve resilience could be difficult, and well-meaning interventions may in fact bring no benefit. There is also a risk that an emphasis on ‘community resilience’ in government policy could shift the burden of responding to floods onto communities, and away from the state. Getting he balance right will be critical.

There are things which those directly affected by flooding can do to protect their businesses and homes, and ensure they can recover quickly from a flood. But such measures need to be complemented by actions from the Environment Agency, local authorities and others, both at times of flooding and in modifying the built environment to reduce risk of property flooding.

The degree to which a group of residents has the ability, time and resources to improve their personal resilience as well as influence their wider environment, will vary from one location to another. There are risks of less well-off communities being left behind, and the degree to which ‘capacity’ can be built in vulnerable communities remains little understood.

The podcast, hosted by Katie Hargrave-Smith, lasts 40 mins and can be accessed here.

(OFA is working with Project Groundwater to try to establish a flood action group in South Oxford, an area of the city which has particular issues with groundwater.)

The ongoing saga of Seacourt P&R extension

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Tuesday 9 April marks the 100th day of 2024 and Seacourt Park & Ride extension has not been open to the public for a single one of those days. Following flooding in January the council cleaned it on 2 February, presumably with an intention of opening it to the public. It had been free of all flooding and pooled water for about a week.  However, it had been raining in the preceding days, and the car park started to flood once more on 3 February, the very day after it had been cleaned. It has been underwater to a greater or lesser extent ever since.

Clean up 2 February
11 February – back to this
3 April – flooding still visible in the P&R extension

Oxford Flood Alliance warned the council in 2016 that the proposed car park extension lay in Flood Zone 3b, the functional floodplain, and it was not suitable development for that location. National planning policy (the NPPF and its accompanying Technical Guidance) stipulates that a Flood Zone 3b location is only suitable for ‘water-compatible’ development and for ‘essential infrastructure… that would remain operational and safe for users in times of flood.’

We submitted at the time that the developer underestimated the extent to which the site flooded. Their consultants had projected that it would be shut on average for 10 days every year due to flooding, a conclusion they had reached by leaving the years of most extensive flooding out of their assessment. We argued at the time that this was an inaccurate representation of the true nature of the site, and did not account for climate change. So far this year alone, it has been shut for 10 times that anticipated duration.

By comparison, the Oxford Flood Alleviation Scheme is an example of the type of development in a Flood Zone 3b location that is compatible with the NPPF, since it remains operational in times of flood (to serve its very purpose) and also is ‘essential infrastructure’, helping to reduce the impact of flooding across Oxford. Oxford Flood Alliance supports this example of responsible development in the floodplain.

On this 100th day of 2024, the 100th day of the year on which the Seacourt Park & Ride extension remains closed to the public, we urge the council to give national and local planning policies the weight they deserve, in particular in relation to flooding. National planning policy exists for a good reason. It is a material consideration for planning committees, and they ignore it at their peril.