Post by Dan Dare on Jan 13, 2023 12:46:01 GMT
James Meek has a lengthy article in a recent issue of the London Review of Books about the politics of flood control and housing: Underwater Living. (It was outside the paywall recently but now it may be back behind).
Meek’s article focuses on recent events is SE Lincolnshire and particularly the Boston area which was severely impacted by the North Sea flood of January 2013. As it also was during the previous ‘once in every 200 years event’, the Great North Sea Floods in 1953. Although the sea-walls protecting Boston were raised after the 1953 floods they were still overwhelmed in 2013 when the peak storm tide exceeded 1953 levels by almost two meters. The response of the authorities? Raise the sea-walls still more and install a ‘Thames-style’ barrage on the tidal River Witham.
What did not happen however was any sort of moratorium on housing construction in the Boston area where, per Meek, 95% of the population – 71,000 people – are at risk from flooding. Like every other of the 400-odd planning districts in England, Boston is subject to government-imposed targets for new housing construction. During the period 2018 to 2021 Boston’s ‘quota’ was 437 new houses. Far from protesting this imposition the council enthusiastically embraced it and in fact constructed 1,047 dwellings during the period, or rather, permitted private companies to construct them for sale. The area in which these new buildings are concentrated is a ‘Flood Zone 3a’, barely 2 meters above average sea level and four meters below the peak level of the River Witham during the 2013 flood. Neverthess, according to the council, Boston has enough unused land within the borough to build 6,000 more houses before it is ‘built-out’.
Meek contrasts the laisser faire approach to flood control to that of the Dutch authorities with their ‘fortress mentality’ with respect to the sea. The UK approach is one of ‘management’, that is damage-control, whereas the Dutch is one of ‘mitigation’ i.e. prevention. In contrast to the the UK, where the Environmental Agency is under no legal obligation to to protect anyone (although it does try) the Dutch government is obliged by law to erect ‘almost absurdly robust’ sea defences, stong enough to protect against a ‘once in 100,000 years event’. Anyone who has visited the Delta Works at the Scheldt Estuary or the Afsluitdijk that encloses the Zuyder Zee will understand what this means.
Incidentally the Boston Barrier that was installed in 2021 was designed and built in Holland.
Meek’s article focuses on recent events is SE Lincolnshire and particularly the Boston area which was severely impacted by the North Sea flood of January 2013. As it also was during the previous ‘once in every 200 years event’, the Great North Sea Floods in 1953. Although the sea-walls protecting Boston were raised after the 1953 floods they were still overwhelmed in 2013 when the peak storm tide exceeded 1953 levels by almost two meters. The response of the authorities? Raise the sea-walls still more and install a ‘Thames-style’ barrage on the tidal River Witham.
What did not happen however was any sort of moratorium on housing construction in the Boston area where, per Meek, 95% of the population – 71,000 people – are at risk from flooding. Like every other of the 400-odd planning districts in England, Boston is subject to government-imposed targets for new housing construction. During the period 2018 to 2021 Boston’s ‘quota’ was 437 new houses. Far from protesting this imposition the council enthusiastically embraced it and in fact constructed 1,047 dwellings during the period, or rather, permitted private companies to construct them for sale. The area in which these new buildings are concentrated is a ‘Flood Zone 3a’, barely 2 meters above average sea level and four meters below the peak level of the River Witham during the 2013 flood. Neverthess, according to the council, Boston has enough unused land within the borough to build 6,000 more houses before it is ‘built-out’.
Meek contrasts the laisser faire approach to flood control to that of the Dutch authorities with their ‘fortress mentality’ with respect to the sea. The UK approach is one of ‘management’, that is damage-control, whereas the Dutch is one of ‘mitigation’ i.e. prevention. In contrast to the the UK, where the Environmental Agency is under no legal obligation to to protect anyone (although it does try) the Dutch government is obliged by law to erect ‘almost absurdly robust’ sea defences, stong enough to protect against a ‘once in 100,000 years event’. Anyone who has visited the Delta Works at the Scheldt Estuary or the Afsluitdijk that encloses the Zuyder Zee will understand what this means.
Incidentally the Boston Barrier that was installed in 2021 was designed and built in Holland.
