Memorandum submitted by Mr Jack Wrightman
(FL 143)
In all the welter of words on flooding one feature
seems to have been overlooked. Since the early 1950s agricultural
land drainage has increased enormously. Also over much of the
country's arable land hedges and ditches have been taken out to
form larger fields. These two features greatly increase the rate
of runoff of rainwater. Such areas are larger by several orders
than the often cited "land landscaping" created by residential
and communal developments. Such changes are likely to be much
more significant in re-assessing flood risk and the management
of flood water.
In the early 1990s whilst examining M27, M4
and M1 for earthworks associated with widespread floods, the impact
of land drains discharging water into the top of cutting slopes
was a factor in stability.
Of course, in times of drought farmers need
to irrigate crops and one partial solution could be the creation
of judiciously sited small agricultural reservoirs to control
runoff as well.
It may be that these features have already been
taken into account by river basin managers, but I have yet to
see them mentioned in the lay or technical press. Given the number
of fingers in the "flood dyke" it seems doubtful.
I hope this note is useful in your committee's
examination.
Jack Wrightman
October 2007
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