Published Date: May 27th, 2021
Members of Fife Council Environment and Protective Services subcommittee heard today about the work to manage and reduce the impact of flooding in areas at risk across Fife.
Over 450 sites have been identified and work is underway to assess and prioritise each location. Officers are investigating each site and applying a scoring system to prioritise those sites at greatest risk.
These assessments have currently produced a number of proposed schemes associated with the flood register. The number of schemes will increase over time and may result in flood mitigation work to be carried out, depending on the findings of the investigations.
Using the Capital funds agreed in February 2021, £500,000 will be allocated this year on newly identified projects. The total fund of £5m will be spent over ten years. An additional £450,000 of Revenue funds have been agreed to be spent in 2021 as a one-off allocation to address smaller flooding issues.
Cllr Ross Vettraino Convener Environment and Protective Services Sub Committee said: “The speed and intensity of the work being carried out to identify, assess, prioritise and implement plans to address flooding issues across Fife is welcomed. The team have pulled out all the stops to make sure each flood risk site is mapped and investigated and that local people are involved in finding practical interventions where possible.
We are proposing to carry out an online consultation as part of the existing flood study in Cardenden, where we’re working in partnership with local organisations and individuals to ensure we take the views of local people and communities into account.
Work to clear the Lochty Burn at Kinglassie is also due to start as soon as possible. All the approvals from SEPA to carry out this work have been received and all going well, we expect the project to be finished by the end of May. This is part of a wider programme of flood prevention work which will continue over the coming months. A flood study for this area is also currently being tendered"
Fife Council is working with Scottish Water NatureScotland (through the Natural Flood Management proposals); Scottish Flood Forum (who advise and assist communities directly affected by flooding), SEPA and neighbouring Local Authorities to ensure flood risk is managed collaboratively at every level and local communities are consulted. Areas most at risk are identified by SEPA in the Flood Risk Management Strategies and more detailed actions to be carried out by Local Authorities and partner organisations are presented in the Local Flood Risk Management Plans. The SEPA consultation is currently underway and anyone wishing to make comment for their area can do so here :
The closing date for the consultation is September 2021. The new Plans for the second cycle 2022 - 2028 will be published in June 2022, once the Strategies have been approved for publishing by the Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform in December 2021. Any Flood Protection Schemes proposed will be submitted to the government who prioritise and identify areas to be given additional financial resources.
