§ Mr. Win GriffithsTo ask the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food what information he has about the number of places along the River Severn where its banks have burst in each of the last 10 years and the number of dwellings, farms and small holdings that have been damaged as a result.
§ Mr. CurryThere has been no breaching of the banks of the River Severn over the last 10 years. All the flooding which has occurred over this period has been caused by banks being over-topped, consistent with the design which allows over-topping so that river levels can be kept below the point where serious urban flooding of large towns might occur.
No precise data are available on the number of properties flooded over the last 10 years in the lower and upper Severn areas. In the tidal reach downstream of Gloucester, about 100 domestic properties and two caravan sites in this area have been flooded by high tides, some on more than one occasion. The incidence of tidal flooding along these banks will be reduced as the River Severn tidal defence scheme progresses.
The extensive floods of last winter, which were of a magnitude that might occur once in 20 years, caused damage to about 350 properties in the upper and lower Severn flood plain. About 60 of these were commercial properties and a further six were farm houses. During this event, a total of 75 sq km of agricultural land was inundated by flood water. Most of the lower Severn over-topped its banks on both sides between Worcester and Gloucester and in the upper Severn upstream of Worcester over-topping occurred in approximately six places.