Hebden Bridge News

Funding For Flood Prevention In Calderdale

Calderdale Councillors are to look at funding options to implement measures which could help reduce future flooding in the district. Members of the Regeneration and Development Scrutiny Panel will meet on Wednesday, November 26th to discuss the costs in detail and how they could be met. Early estimates suggest annual revenue costs of £247,000, with capital costs of between £75,000 and £275,000, each year for five years.

However implementing such measures would also bring about revenue savings due to a reduction in the emergency deployment of signing, gritting and sand bagging.

Earlier this year, Cabinet endorsed the findings of the scrutiny panel’s detailed land-drainage and flooding review and asked for identification of funding requirements.

Councillor Barry Collins, Regeneration and Development Scrutiny Panel Chairman, said:

“The Council’s priority must be to begin preparing local communities for the increased risk of flooding caused by climate change.

“Initial ideas from officers focus largely on drainage improvements and we will look carefully at all their proposals.

“Judging by Calderdale’s problems last autumn and winter, we need to draw down any available government funding and get to work just as soon as we can.”

Once panel members have agreed the most effective way forward they will report back to Cabinet and seek funding provision as part of the 2009/10 budget process.