Welcome to 2011! Some might remember I was a speaker at a workshop at University of West of England (UWE) in Bristol before Christmas on flooding - see my blog here for full details. There were plenty of lively discussions - well now resources from this workshop are being posted on the project website under ‘Workshop follow-up’. The programme, briefing paper and powerpoints are already available although some are more difficult to understand if you weren't there (including mine). However both audio and video of the presentations will also be available very soon! See details of the workshops at: www.glos.ac.uk/research/csfc/lfh/Pages/workshopfollowup.aspx
Last night I went to a meeting at Ebley Mill about the new flood codes - was slightly shocked that only 5 Parish Councillors, flood wardens and water course wardens there in total - and I was the only District councillor. It was an icey evening and I hope it was that rather than lack of interest that kept folk away....especially as Parishes are meant to be putting together the local emergency plans....
Well Friday last week I went along to a day's workshop in Bristol on flooding and 'art' - it had the catchy-title: ‘Researching Learning to Live with Water: Flood histories, Environmental Change, Remembrance and Resilience'.
It was an Arts and Humanities Research Council funded project involving folk from various universities around the country - this was the first of a series of workshops - I was one of 6 speakers - the others all Profs and Docs, I was there with a local action group perspective having helped set up the Ruscombe Brook Action Group and the Stroud Valleys Water Forum - plus of course being a District councillor and sitting on the Wessex Water Customer Liaison Panel.
The aims of the network can be found here - basically about exploring the potential that arts and humanities approaches have (in interdisciplinary contexts) to contribute to our understandings of how communities have lived with flood risk in the past, and how they might do so in the future.
There is a great introduction to the project here. It includes: "The July 2007 floods in Gloucestershire were considered by hydrologists to be a very extreme event, with percentage probabilities of occurrence of <0.5>200 year return period) on some rivers (Marsh and Hannaford, 2007). It represented the biggest peacetime civil emergency in recent history. The scale of these floods brought the possible interaction between fluvial (river), pluvial (surface water) and groundwater flooding in a single event on to the radar of the public and those involved in flood risk management. The severity of the 2007 floods was again matched by those in Cumbria in 2009. Lives, property, strategic infrastructure, and the fabrics of local communities and economies were inundated and destroyed. Many other smaller, but equally severe at the local level, instances of flooding of settlements and parts of settlements have occurred and seem set to continue across the UK. Across Europe and globally, extreme floods events have also occurred in the 1990s and 2000s."
Indeed as it goes on these events have helped confirm the view that out climate is changing. However as the day noted and this blog has done too - flood and drought are two sides of the same coin. A point perhaps missed by policies and approaches like the Pitt Review - although the Pitt Review does embed the idea of resilience - how can communities, and society more generally, be (made more) resilient in the face of flood risk and flood events.
In the arts there is a growing interest in landscape, place, nature, community, environment and environmental history - in Stroud we have groups like the excellent 'Walking the Land' that have had many local exhibitions and walks and more. The arts as this 'Living Flood' project hopes to show can help with investigating local histories of flooding, helping manage the after effects of floods and living with flood risk, connecting those who have no experience of floods with those who have to help prepare in areas identified as flood risk. It is extraordinary that houses continue to be built on flood plains.
Learning to Live with Water: Flood histories, Environmental Change, Remembrance and Resilience. Workshop 1: Floods and environmental change: conceptual frameworks for thinking about watery landscapes and living with floods.
Programme
10.45. Reading 1: From Small Memories by José Saramago. Lissa Carter, who performed the readings is a theatre specialist working in the south-west - trained at New College and later completed a MA in Feminist Performance at Bristol University. She has taught acting skills for many years and is a voice specialist. I loved these readings that were delivered beautifully - many of them bringing to life flood experiences, many of them bringing a smile...what a treat for us!
11.50. Talk 3: Dr. Simon Read, School of Arts and Education, Middlesex University and Artist: “Imagining Change. (Artist as mediator in coastal flooding histories and future scenarios)”. Again another fascinating talk about the Suffolk coast and use of beautifully painted maps to plot and record flooding and impact - to show how the 'armour' defences along the coast - rocks from Norway - are collapsing and communities are threatened. In the afternoon a couple of artworks by Simon Read were on display including "A map of the River Deben to show topography and the indicative flood plain 1999-2010" - beautiful but also an extraordinary record.
12.20. Talk 4: Dr. Rebecca Whittle, Lancaster Environment Centre; University of Lancaster “After the rain: flood, vulnerabilityand urban resilience in Hull”. This talk was also brilliant - a great project looking at adults and children who had experienced flood - work compiled from interviews and diaries to give a real flavour of how floods impact. It isn't the flood that often causes the problems but the aftermath and dealing with insurers and more....
I also mentioned three artists - the international Iranian artist Ahmad Nadalian who had a big impact on me seeing how powerful art can be at getting messages across (see my blog here and here re his visit to Stroud) plus two local artists - Simon Packard (see here - his sculptures are still at Ruskin Mill) and Richard Dean (see map left which was in my presentation and see my blog here).
“These maps are not intended to scare, but the vision is rather alarming. Art making has always had a visionary, prophetic intention, to see into humanity’s dreams as well as nightmares, to explore the things we fear most. Maybe in this way we become better able to deal with these fears, and possibly also get a firm grip on what we need to do to avoid them. I hope we can all learn from their watery tales”. Dean 2009.
2.15. Talk 6: Nicola Whyte Department of History, University of Exeter: “Memories of wateryscapes in the early modern period”. Wow was this interesting - I've had an awarenss of the use of court reports - think I caught something on radio 4 a while back but this was really interesting to see how these old reports can be used to look at our landscape and tell us stories - to look at memory and oral traditions and for example how flood landscapes changed grazing and impacted on local Parishes and farmers.
As some will know I have been away some days and came home to news that Cornwall was mopping up after the devastating flash floods. The operation will last for months and cost millions, with hundreds of residents driven from their homes. Greens had written a letter to the local press about the Coalition cuts to flood defences - it was in the papers last week.
The Environment Agency has completed £35,000 worth of flood defence work along the River Severn. The agency has repaired more than a mile of tidal flood bank near Oldbury Nuclear Power Station, which protects an area of low lying land containing approximately 100 properties. See Gloucestershire Gazette 12th Nov 2010.
The last couple of weeks have been slowly building up with the meetings...meeting to sort allotment water supply plus working party, a Food Transition meeting to look at a Potato Day and an Edible Open Garden project for next July plus a meeting last night about Feed-In tariffs and tonight a Parish Council meeting. I am going to try and keep it to 3 evenings a week as last year it was usually 4 or 5 weekday evenings....
Anyhow the Food group one was lots of fun to start planning the projects for next year and included a walk around one of the members organic garden - a bra that was rejected by a charity shop has a new role supporting a squash (see photo) - we are starting to consider gardens for next year - already have a number but if anyone in Stroud Valleys reads this and is interested please get in touch.....our next meeting is on 13th Oct - also see my previous blog re the film, 'Food Inc', on Sunday night.
Anyhow we discussed the Preliminary Flood Risk Assessments - which are needed to be prepared. The Minister last month chose Gloucestershire to launch the plan - indeed our County website has lots of good info and videos on it - like who does what, what to do in the event of a flood, grease and more - see here - if link doesn't work it is probably due to the redesign of the website that I understand will happen very soon.
I have to say it is disappointing that Pitt's recommendations have not been fully enacted and we are still left with over a dozen bodies responsible for various bits of river and water management - what a nonsense. Who will enforce when there are problems?? Will SUDs be nationally funded?
Don't read this article at meal times! This article below was sent to the Randwick Runner last week to update folk as we had a great meeting of the Stroud Valleys Water Forum where we were able to ask many questions of Severn Trent.
The Ruscombe Brook Action Group also met the night before to pull together questions and issues (see photo). We are also looking at the next phase for Puckshole and plans for Hamwell Leaze and The Lawns - see previous blog on this.
Anyway to that article:
Last week we met again with Severn Trent at Ebley Mill and the year old Stroud Valleys Water Forum. John O' Leary (pictured second from right) from Severn Trent gave us a comprehensive presentation of plans for the area including the huge works at Slad and Cashes Green. At those sites vast pipes will store 180 cubic meters of sewage during heavy rain then discharge slowly into the sewers when flows have reduced. This will hopefully stop the handful of properties in the area from getting sewage in their homes. 
Relining does not appear to be an option as the pipes are not large enough, so a proposal is being submitted for specialised 'pipe bursting' that will lead to replacement of sewer sections. However this is an expensive option as much of the sewer network is inaccessible to the 40 tonne truck they usually use. There are also hydraulic issues and other challenges. So we need to now wait to hear whether the plans are accepted and what level of priority the capital works will get.
Dear Resident,
Want to talk to Philip?
This week has been a busy one for meetings despite the snow - most of Monday various meetings re the Scrutiny inquiry I chair, evening meetings plus the wood fuel project and on Tuesday morning a long meeting at Ebley Mill (pictured earlier this week before snow) with District and County Council, the EA, Water 21, David Drew and Flood Action groups - particularly BARFF (Bridgend Against River Frome Flooding) who had called the meeting - indeed congrats to them for getting it together.
Photo: Downton Road (Brigend) - a lidar of the flood area showing how the road increases flooding - see more here.
This blog is a bit of a ramble from Bridgend to the new Water Bill...it starts with a questionnaire I completed from a civil engineering student in his final year of a degree at Nottingham Trent University.
Indeed Gloucestershire Councils all wrote a joint letter last month pointing to some of their concerns - here is some of what it said:We note with great interest the recently published Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee Paper (23 September 2009) reporting its views on progress to date on the new Flood and Water Management Bill. We are therefore disappointed to read that the Committee identifies that the current Draft Bill is a “confusing mix of measures many of them poorly drafted”.
We are profoundly concerned that the proposals in this Bill would bring about an over centralised model which, if introduced would significantly reduce the role of Local Government as a Community Leader, and place excessive power and influence with the Environment Agency. If enacted this Bill, based on the current EA flood risk investment strategy, would place the responsibility on the Environment Agency for 40% of the 5.2 million properties that are at risk of flooding and give them 90% of the resources. Local Government will pick up responsibility for 60% of the properties at risk from flooding with less than 10% of the resources. This at best can be described as perverse.
The joint model we have been operating in Gloucestershire was presented to the Select Committee by colleagues from Gloucestershire County Council putting forward the proposal of a Joint Catchment Flood Management Board, which has been identified by the Select Committee as having “much to recommend it”; yet to date this has been ignored by DeFRA.
Our principle concern (and that clearly reflected by the Select Committee) is that the Bill is being rushed and there is a likelihood that the outcome of such a Bill may well offer no significant improvement to where we are already.
It also has the potential to be an overcentralised model, which is likely to result in reduced value for money and greater remoteness from local communities. We ask that you explore our concerns and seek to ensure that any future Flood Bill is fit for purpose.
Of course there are many other reasons that this site should not be developed like it would create a major change in the form, style and mass compared with the ‘ribbon’ development which has so far been built along this stretch of Ebley Road in a countryside setting close to the Cotswold AONB and the Cotswold Way. As the CPRE guy said: "It is clear that the development would be unsympathetic to the surrounding houses and would damage to some extent, arguably substantial or significant, this part of the countryside." 
The Ruscombe Brook Action Group AGM was on 15th Sept 7.30 at Randwick Village Hall - over 20 people turned up which wasn't bad considering we had 5 apologies and hadn't really advertised much - anyhow the photos here are a bit of a record of some of the two presentations by Water 21 and below there is als a summary of the AGM for local press.
We also had the Water for Life exhibition which has been touring the County - a Vision 21 project with Severn Trent Water.
The evening started by Zarin Hainsworth, our Chair (pictured here with her daughter) giving a brief review of work of RBAG - what has been achieved over the last year - including the setting up of the new water forum.
I said a few additional words the Treasurer gave a report and then we went staright to appointment of officers - Chair, Zarin Hainsworth, Secretary, Jo Botterill and me as Treasurer - I was delighted by this as I have been Secretary for over 4 years and with being so busy was doing a less good job - Jo has already been helping lots and will be great.
However that does mean I am now in charge of the dosh - I think we have all of £100 - anyway we then had the Water 21 student presentations followed by a preview of a new Aussie 'Land & Water Microbial' film - very exciting stuff that I mentioned briefly at one of our previous meetings - see here.Photos: These next two photos are of Downton Road (Brigend) - a lidar of the flood area showing how the road increases flooding - the second slide is ofe some of the solutions being considered.
At our AGM in Randwick Village Hall, Chair, Zarin Hainsworth, outlined work this year. It included a walk along the 2 mile brook to identify problems, one day digging out silt from near a culvert and one day removing a vast amount of rubbish including two sofas, a tent, waste bins and of course a shopping trolley. Apart from work to improve the sewage system we are also delighted to have finally got agreement and funding for a grill and clearing out of the culvert at Puckshole. This initial measure will reduce flooding of the lane but there are further improvements planned for the site. We're also producing information on how to reduce our water use.
Photos: the next three are re Slad showing where attenuation ponds could be, using the map and lidar and then a picture showing attenuation capabilities increasing when heavier rainfall
At the AGM after Officers reports and elections, we heard from Adam Broadhead and Julian Jones from Water 21. They talked about how Stroud Valleys’ complex hydrogeology has been disrupted by artificial modification, urbanisation and intensification of agriculture. Infiltration zones such as fields and woodlands have been covered with paved, impermeable surfaces.
We also heard about specific problems at Brigend and what solutions might be possible, the work in the Slad Valley and more. The evening concluded with a DVD preview of work in Australia around soils and water. We are now looking forward to another year of improvements along the brook.
The Stroud News and Journal reported this week the positive talks between BARFF (Bridgend Against River Frome Flooding) and the District Council. This is good news - BARFF are a member of the recently set up Stroud Valleys Water Forum and we had a discussion about how we can all work more closely together to find solutions for the flooding problems in the Five Valleys. See more re Forum below.
At a meeting last week on 24th February residents from local brook and flood groups came together for the first time to create a Forum to look at local water, sewage and flooding issues. I helped set up the meeting and was delighted by the positive input from so many people. Below are some quotes I just sent out this week re the meeting and below them some of the issues we discussed.
