Supplementary memorandum submitted by
Strensall and Towthorpe Parish Council (FL 39a)
ADDENDUM TO
ORAL EVIDENCE
GIVEN TO
THE EFRA SELECT
COMMITTEE AT
THE LAWNS
IN LINCOLN
SESSION HELD
ON 30 JANUARY
2008
Following the session held at The Lawns in Lincoln
Visitor Centre on Wednesday 30 January at which the Chairman of
the Select Committee, Mr Michael Jack MP, stated that additional
data could be considered by the Select Committee if sent.
Strensall and Towthorpe Parish Council wish
to add the following and as requested by the chairman we hope
the points in this addendum will be responded to:
— We whole heartedly agree with the
suggestion made by almost every witness that the system to report/request
attention to any drainage related problem should be dealt with
by a single authority. We also desire that such an authority should
have powers to insist that attention is given by the various owners,
including riparian owners, of drainage systems, ditches etc to
ensure a continuous flow through such systems is maintained.
— Strensall and Towthorpe form part
of the Unitary Authority of City of York Council and we understand
that in exceptional circumstances that this authority must prioritise
their resources to deal with those most at risk from flooding.
However as mentioned previously our parishes have not suffered
as badly as many others and there is little risk, at present,
of properties being overwhelmed by the River Foss when in flood.
However it is recognised that had the surrounding areas, such
as the Vale of York and the Yorkshire Dales experienced the amount
of rainfall which affected Gloucestershire, Worcestershire, Warwickshire,
Humberside and South Yorkshire then we would all have had a different
story to tell. The situation does occur quite regularly where
the highway is flooded especially at the hotspots shown on the
map presented by us at Lincoln. Over the past week or so the rainfall
in this area has been replaced by dry windy conditions which has
seen most of the highway flooding disappear but after early morning
rain on 31 January 2008 once again the hotspots were again affected
by floodwater as the road gullies or verge grips/drainage ditches
were unable to cope. Therefore in the recommendations made by
City of York Council's Advisory Panel to the Executive where the
events of June 2007 were described as an "exceptional event"
only exacerbated what we in Strensall and Towthorpe see as a regular
occurrence with little or no hope of a solution being found. However
we do note that recent cutbacks in the street cleaning of gutters
(especially in the leaf fall season) were seen as a contributory
factor and that due consideration is recommended to be paid to
this aspect when setting the budgets for 2008-08 and future years.
— We also consider that it is imperative
that steps are taken to compile records of all aspects of the
drainage system as a matter of urgency as records held by the
local authority are either limited or non existent. Local knowledge,
particularly of the older residents, could be a source of data.
— We also believe that when planning
applications are considered, due regard, must be paid to the drainage
issues raised by individuals and Parish Councils and such issues
are not dismissed by the Water Utility or the Internal Drainage
Board's when asked to comment on their ability to deal with surface
water from new buildings thus leaving any restrictions on the
builder/developer to be set by the Development Control department.
The planning laws which allow the construction of conservatories,
patios, driveways etc which reduce the amount of natural surface
drainage be amended to ensure that due regard is made to this
factor.
— A recent planning application has
been granted in Strensall parish where agreement has been given
to an application to demolish a bungalow and replace it with two
large houses. A neighbour objected to the scheme and is concerned
that the drainage system from his property passes under the garden
of the bungalow to access the Yorkshire Water system. He has complained
to the local authority that when his property was built, only
three years ago, then a condition attached to that development
was that a "freerain system" be installed to alleviate
flooding but no such condition has been applied to the current
application and the same local authority now says that if problems
did occur with the new development causing flooding or drainage
probelems to neighbouring properties then this would be a civil
matter between the parties involved. It is also another occasion
when the water utility, although aware of potential flooding,
made no comment when asked for input about the planning application
during the consultation stage.
Such inconsistencies appear to be caused by the
local authority and utilities but neither will accept any responsibility
for their actions (or non-actions) but if a single authority was
created to be responsible for drainage then surely they would
take into account the problems that could ensue from their decisions/comments.
Thank you for giving the representatives of
Strensall and Towthorpe Parish Council the opportunity to voice
our concerns to the EFRA Select Committee.
Peter Jesse
Chairman
Keith Marquis
Councillor
Strensall and Towthorpe Parish Council
February 2008
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