Flood defence scheme in East Riding given the go-ahead

PLANS for a multi-million pound flood defence scheme in the East Riding has been given the green light.

East Riding Council's planning committee has approved plans for the estimated £14m Willerby and Derringham Flood Alleviation Scheme.

The project is part of a wider initiative to increase flood defences across the region to protect thousands of homes in Willerby, Cottingham, Orchard Park and the Derringham area of west Hull.

The Willerby scheme includes digging up to four reservoirs, three alongside the A164 and one just north of Springhead Park Golf Club.

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Under the proposals, the main reservoir, near the Ketch pub, would hold 80,000 cubic metres of water and would cover roughly twice the area of the nearby Willerby retail park.

In total, the four pools will have the capacity to hold 205,000 cubic metres of water.

Fred Smith, chairman of Willerby Parish Council, welcomed the approval.

"It is a fantastic idea for Willerby and the surrounding area and it is just what we need," he said.

"I am delighted that planning approval has been granted and work can begin on the sites.

"Flooding has been a major problem for a number of years now. In Willerby we get a huge amount of the run-off from Cottingham and other higher areas, so these new lagoons will go a long way to protecting our homes."

The planning committee voted by seven to four in favour of the proposals after calls for a deferral were thrown out.

Members from Haltemprice Flood Action Group and Cottingham Flood Action Group aired their concerns at yesterday's meeting regarding the design of the defences.

They called for further technical information to be made available by the engineers.

However, councillors approved the plans, claiming there was adequate expert reasoning behind the scheme.

Councillor Bryan Pearson voted in favour of the application.

He said: "I do not see why we are even considering delaying this development. We need to stop houses flooding as soon as we can and this scheme will help us to do that."

According to the council, the proposed lagoons will offer flood protection to about 8,000 homes.

Funding for the scheme is set to come directly from the Environment Agency and the European Regional Development Fund.

The council has earmarked summer 2014 to start the work, with the view to it being completed in the summer of the following year.

The scheme is one part of a major flood defence project, which is estimated to cost in excess of £30m to complete.

Other schemes in the project include the Cottingham and Orchard Park Flood Alleviation Scheme and the Anlaby East Ella Flood Alleviation Scheme.