Somerset Levels.

[Fisherman Mike]

I have the utmost sympathy for the residents of the Somerset levels it must be hell on earth. Nature is purely reclaiming her own however.

 

The levels have been drained by man for agricultural use since the early 11th Century and Neolithic man knew it as a vast area of water, reed and sedge 4000 years before that. I don’t think just regular dredging of the Parrett , Axe , Brue and Tone and the relief drains is going to make a jot of difference in the long term and the worse affected (relatively modern settlements in the scheme of things )are going to have to radically adapt to the increasing water levels over the next 2-300 years.

 

This will mean absolutely massive investment in flood defences, infrastructure and building and probably won’t be cost efficient to carry out.

It wouldnt surprise me at all if whole communities were abandoned in the future and several villages crumble into decay…

 

I think the long term situation is going to be much worse than the Government and Environment agency possibly imagine !

 

Any thoughts...?

Edited February 6, 2014 by Fisherman Mike

[Blackpowder]

Trouble is there will be loud voices raised wanting to have rivers dredged into canals, death to river life of all sorts and not nessessarily a cure to flooding.

 

Blackpowder

[Penelope]

There is a train of thought hat the county is called Somerset (summer settle?) as large parts of it were only inhabitable during the summer due to winter flooding.

 

I have the utmost sympathy for the residents of the Somerset levels it must be hell on earth. Nature is purely reclaiming her own however.

 

The levels have been drained by man for agricultural use since the early 11th Century and Neolithic man knew it as a vast area of water, reed and sedge 4000 years before that. I don’t think just regular dredging of the Parrett , Axe , Brue and Tone and the relief drains is going to make a jot of difference in the long term and the worse affected (relatively modern settlements in the scheme of things )are going to have to radically adapt to the increasing water levels over the next 2-300 years.

 

This will mean absolutely massive investment in flood defences, infrastructure and building and probably won’t be cost efficient to carry out.

It wouldnt surprise me at all if whole communities were abandoned in the future and several villages crumble into decay…

 

I think the long term situation is going to be much worse than the Government and Environment agency possibly imagine !

 

Any thoughts...?

[four-wheel-drive]

I think that if people decide to build houses in places that could flood why oh why do they not build houses that are flood proof as they do in other parts of the world and Ie have the ground floor as storage spec car parking etc so that if the water cums up you just move the car to higher ground and move upstairs problem solved.

[wymberley]

 

 

It wouldnt surprise me at all if whole communities were abandoned in the future and several villages crumble into decay…

 

 

 

You mean like Cranbrook, just over the border in Devon.

[Mentalmac]

It's like Holland, internationally renowned for their ability to dredge and reclaim much of the lowlands... we just reclaim some land and then quickly put thousands of buildings on it and don't worry about the long term...

 

They are looking to build near mine in COlchester on a flood plane which is always flooded and since they flattened it all it's been a lake ever since... as soon as it dries out they'll go and stick a load of houses on and in a few years they'll all get flooded. Same as Somerset.

[JDog]

I doubt whether dredging the river could have meant that so much water could have been disposed of efficiently without causing that flooding. All that water plus the high tides were bound to spell trouble.

[fenboy]

Its no simple solution for sure, but I read somewhere the other day that the EA have spent in excess of 50 m recently on bird reserves a far greater sum than they have spent on dredging .

 

When you see the things that this and previous goverments waste money on then the mind boggles , we still give away millions in foreign aid , how much aid will those effected by these floods recieve ?

[Steve_in_Devon]

Its no simple solution for sure, but I read somewhere the other day that the EA have spent in excess of 50 m recently on bird reserves a far greater sum than they have spent on dredging .

 

When you see the things that this and previous goverments waste money on then the mind boggles , we still give away millions in foreign aid , how much aid will those effected by these floods recieve ?

I agree with the issue on foreign aid, I can’t believe this country gives away so much money but seems to struggle to help their own people.

 

 

But, I do think the made gives it way, Somerset levels, and to think you could live there without flooding does seem a little short sighted. I agree that the rivers need to be maintained,, but can't believe that this would have solved the problem when you look at the amount of water out there.

 

 

I do feel sorry for those people though, it must be dreadful to watch the news and see the weather and more rain due every day.

 

 

On the building on flood plains, it is amazing if you were an individual and approached the council to build on a flood plain, how quickly do you think you would be turned away. But if you are a developer, well then this seems to be a different storey. I wonder why?

 

 

I guess in the future we going to see a lot more like this.

 

[JDog]

The amount of money spent on nature reserves just shows how strong the conservationist lobby is. The RSPB will be at the forefront of that there is no doubt.

[Penelope]

I may be being cynical, but on Radio 4's Farming Today yesterday, an RSPB representative was saying that dairying and beef farming on the Somerset Levels are no longer sustainable due to the on going flooding. Wouldn't be trying to drive down the land prices in the area in increase their own holdings at little cost would they?

 

 

The amount of money spent on nature reserves just shows how strong the conservationist lobby is. The RSPB will be at the forefront of that there is no doubt.

[Fisherman Mike]

The strange thing is we’ve known about the issues of building in areas prone to flooding for 100’s of years.

 

My Grandmother for instance was born and raised in the Cotswold village of Bibury and as a girl she lived in a cottage which was build adjacent a water meadow.

They had flagstone floors, so the water when it flooded could be swept out of door, timber furniture and raised ovens. The meadows outside had a network of ditches with little stone bridges and several water hatches connected to the Coln. These were regularly maintained.

 

They didn’t have carpet or skirting’s, underfloor heating or upholstery that could get damaged admittedly and I know things have moved on in the last 2 or 3 hundred years as the western world has embraced cultural advances and been ravenous for material possessions and domestic comforts…. but it seems we haven’t really learned that much.

 

I think I was born in the wrong era.

[old rooster]

The other downside of all this is that irresponsible building of inappropriate houses in flood plains leads to massive levels of insurance claims (if indeed half of the properties can even get insurance, which a lot of the TV interviews suggest that they can't).

 

The claims made affect premiums across the board.

 

With all the recent flooding you'd have to wonder about the future saleability of a lot of these places.

 

Very sad but we've brought a lot of the problems on ourselves.

 

Historically many towns were built near rivers as they offered a means of transport, that is rarely the case now so not much need to do silly things like that anymore.

[Livefast123]

There was very little issue with flooding on the levels until about 18 years ago when the Environment Lobby.......sorry, Agency took over. They preferred to leave the rivers and rhymes to their own devices and thought it would be a good thing to let them all return to a nature reserve like state, as their supporters wanted. Oh yeah, and in the process saved millions of pounds.

 

The system is so clogged up it couldn't drain a bath let alone the rain we have been having. I'm out helping these people everyday and it makes me mad that this country can quickly give millions to India et all but when Britons are in need they do nothing.

 

Government hang your head in shame.

[Cranfield]

This is an interesting read, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Somerset_Levels .

There have been incidences of severe flooding since the Middle Ages, with thousands drowned in 1607, so its not a new thing.

 

The Environment Agency is not "fit for purpose", as a Farmer said on the TV news , "they are more interested in birds and bugs, than people".

By all means have a "nature conservation" department, but it should not be associated with an "engineering environment" obligation, because of the natural conflict of interest could develop.

At present the EA is full of "conservationists" and very few "realists".

[jgguinness]

I'm not being funny here but where was this government intervention when the cities of York, Carlisle, Sheffield and other northern boroughs were flooded. I like to think of a fair society for all but this really is a show of cherry picking who you help by geographical location!!

ABSOLUTELY SHOCKING. If these families do get government support (which I agree with), I strongly urge the previous flood victims... that got sweet FA from the government to sue them.

Yes that's tax payers’ money, but it should be a fair system for all.
AND it is about time that the government put money into updating the countries drainage systems - and start with those areas at most risk (i.e. Repeat flooded areas). For far too long a couple of cities and regions have used up huge resources at the detriment of the underfunded countryside.

 

[Penelope]

http://www.insidetheenvironmentagency.co.uk/feed.php

[Livefast123]

I'm not being funny here but where was this government intervention when the cities of York, Carlisle, Sheffield and other northern boroughs were flooded. I like to think of a fair society for all but this really is a show of cherry picking who you help by geographical location!!

ABSOLUTELY SHOCKING. If these families do get government support (which I agree with), I strongly urge the previous flood victims... that got sweet FA from the government to sue them.

Yes that's tax payers money, but it should be a fair system for all.

AND it is about time that the government put money into updating the countries drainage systems - and start with those areas at most risk (i.e. Repeat flooded areas). For far too long a couple of cities and regions have used up huge resources at the detriment of the underfunded countryside.

 

Couldn't agree more, unless you are in Londonistan then you are on your own, Jack

 

6 weeks already and no serious help, just locals and the emergency services

Edited February 6, 2014 by Livefast123

[scotslad]

The big problem ur going to having with cleaning/dredging is they will be so far behind with so long doing nothing for so long, instead of doing a bit here and there which will have very little effect on nature and has always been how it was managed so wil be used to it.

They wil now have to go in with the big machines remaving a ot of bulk and depth as well as clearing miles and miles, will be a far bigger ecological disaster now when they start trying to make uo or 20 years of doing nothing

 

As somone said earlier IF they insist on building on flood plains they should bear that in mind with the design of the house

There is a shop i know that regualry floods somtimes up to around 5-6ft on a very bad flood usually just feet. All the walls and floor are tilled and sealed, has a sump in the flor for pumping last drops of water out and all electrics hang down from ceiling and most stock stored up stairs.

As soon as water rescides all it needs is a quick hose down and scrub turn sump pump on to get rid of all water and he's open ready for business very quickly.

[Penelope]

http://www.eureferendum.com/blogview.aspx?blogno=84689

 

http://johnredwoodsdiary.com/2014/02/04/what-the-today-programme-should-have-asked-the-environment-agency/#comment-282005

 

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/editorials/the-environment-agency-requires-scrutiny-9104720.html

Edited February 6, 2014 by Penelope

[pigeon controller]

The irony is that I believe they are building a second massive reservoir at Cheddar as they have a shortage of water in Somerset in the summer months due to the influx of holidaymakers.

 

Previously in the post we mentioned the Dutch are they not getting the rain and high tide and wind. They seem to cope without any concerns???

[bullet boy]

Feel sorry for all those affected.Weather is awful.

[Penelope]

You are correct, I stay at the B&B of the Chief Designer/Surveyor when I go pike fishing on Chew Valley Reservoir and have add a few chats about it.

 

The irony is that I believe they are building a second massive reservoir at Cheddar as they have a shortage of water in Somerset in the summer months due to the influx of holidaymakers.

Previously in the post we mentioned the Dutch are they not getting the rain and high tide and wind. They seem to cope without any concerns???

[Fisherman Mike]

http://www.insidetheenvironmentagency.co.uk/feed.php

That's bloody disgraceful..

 

******** if I am going to buy a rod licence next year...they can swing for it !

[Penelope]

Opens your eyes don't it!

 

That's bloody disgraceful..

 

******** if I am going to buy a rod licence next year...they can swing for it !