Schemes to reduce flooding in Horncastle and Louth on show
People living and working in Horncastle and Louth are invited to learn about flood alleviation plans before the Environment Agency and its partner organisations submit them for planning approval this spring.
Drawings and information sheets will be on display at Horncastle library during the last week of January and at Louth library during the first week of February. Environment Agency staff will also be on-hand for question and answer sessions in Horncastle (Monday 10:30am-4pm, Thursday 10am-3pm and Saturday 11am-1pm) and in Louth (Monday 11am-5pm, Thursday 1pm-6pm and Saturday 10am-12pm).
Planning
The schemes are set to be submitted for planning permission in March. The £8.1million Horncastle scheme will see a flood storage reservoir – or washland – built to reduce flood risk from the River Bain. The £6.5million Louth scheme will create two reservoirs outside the town to reduce risk from the River Lud.
The proposed Horncastle and Louth washlands will include new earth embankments and automatic control structures. The control structures would manage water levels through the towns by gradually closing as river flows increase. This would maintain a constant flow through the towns until water levels begin to fall, allowing the control sluice to gradually open and the washland to empty.
Andrew Barron, Flood and Coastal Risk Management Senior Advisor at Environment Agency, said:
We are making good progress with these important and long-awaited schemes and are busy preparing to submit planning applications to make them a reality. They have been developed through a strong partnership with the county council, town and district councils and internal drainage boards and we now want to give people the chance to see our plans.
We would therefore encourage as many people as possible to visit their local library and find out more about what we are doing to reduce flood risk to their homes and businesses.
Andrew added:
The Horncastle and Louth schemes would reduce flood risk from the rivers Bain and Lud but it is still important for people to recognise that flooding cannot always be prevented and may come from sources other than the river.
We encourage people to make sure they are signed up to receive Environment Agency Flood Warnings which provide advance notice when river flooding is expected.
People can get more information, check their flood risk or to sign up to receive Environment Agency flood warnings by logging on to https://www.gov.uk/floodsdestroy or by calling the 24-hour Floodline Warnings Direct service on 0345 988 1188 or 0845 988 1188.
Notes to Editors:
• Drawings and information sheets will be on display at Horncastle Library, Wharf Road, during the week of 26 January to 31 January (closed Tuesday). Members of the project team will also be on hand to answer questions Monday 10:30am-4pm, Thursday 10am-3pm and Saturday 11am-1pm.
• The materials will be on display in Louth Library, Northgate, from Monday 2 February through to Friday 6 February. Members of the project team will be available Monday 11am-5pm, Thursday 1pm-6pm and Saturday 10am-12pm to answer questions.
• The Horncastle scheme is a partnership between the Environment Agency, Lincolnshire County Council, East Lindsey District Council, Witham 3rd Internal Drainage Board and Horncastle Town Council.
• The Louth scheme partnership is made up of Lincolnshire County Council, East Lindsey District Council, Louth Town Council and Lindsey Marsh Drainage Board.
• The Louth and Horncastle Flood Alleviation Schemes are being designed and built for the Environment Agency by VBA.