A long term approach to flood management is needed in the face of an “uncertain future climate” says the National Farmers Union (NFU), commenting after today’s £2.3 billion flood investment announcement by the government.
“Given the number of extreme weather events in the last decade it is imperative that the Government commits to increasing spending on flood management so that we’re better prepared for an uncertain future climate,” said the NFU.
“Renewed investment needs to be focused on those areas with the highest chance of flooding and on better and more regular maintenance of our rivers and flood defences. It needs to be balanced across both urban and rural areas and for communities and businesses, including agriculture.”
The union also said that the Environment Agency needs a long term resource budget for flood management in the same way as it has for capital investment so that it can plan and schedule maintenance works better.
“Moving away from silos of capital or resource funding altogether would give even greater financial flexibility,” said the NFU.
