Powys council to prepare flood risk strategy

Council bosses in Powys will prepare their own strategy to prevent flooding misery in Mid Wales, it has emerged.

It comes as the Welsh Assembly launches its National Strategy for Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management in Wales. John Griffiths, Environment and Sustainable Development Minister, said today every local authority in Wales would produce its own strategy, based on the national one.

He said one in six properties in Wales was at risk of flooding from rivers, the sea and surface water.

Mr Griffiths said: "Whilst the launch of this national strategy represents a significant milestone in our changing approach to flood and coastal erosion risk management in Wales, it is not the end.

"Projections suggest that as our climate changes we will see higher sea levels, increases in the intensity of rainfall and inevitably more frequent flooding.

"The consequences of that flooding will see greater risks to life, the economy and the environment.

"In addition to this, rates of coastal erosion will increase with more coastal communities facing the risks of loss of land, property and resources."

He added: "While we cannot prevent all flooding or coastal erosion there are actions we can take to manage the risks and reduce the consequences.

"We need to adopt a more holistic risk management approach, where defence is combined with a range of other measures to help communities and the wider environment.

"The objectives set out within this national strategy are intended to ensure that we develop a flood and coastal erosion risk management system that is fit for Wales and flexible enough to adapt to future changes."

Chris Mills, director of Environment Agency Wales, said: "We welcome this critically important strategy which will put flooding and coastal erosion at the heart of how communities and businesses prepare for the future.

"The biggest environmental challenge we face today, by far, is climate change.

"It is likely to cause more extreme weather conditions and sea level rise which will increase the threat of flooding for all of us."

Regular reviews of the changing nature of flood and coastal erosion risk in Wales will be undertaken over the lifetime of the national strategy for flood and coastal erosion risk management.

The national strategy itself will be reviewed in 2016.

By Anwen Evans