Floods

[123everton]

Who is responsible for the flooding, I feel that the way our land is managed is wrong.
Farmers don't dig ditches anymore, the drains aren't cleaned out reguarly or anywhere near enough and the rivers aren't dredged either.
If it wasn't for the disruption, disfunction and disconnection of privatisation the coordinated response could have been kept in place that preceded it.
Agree or disagree?

[New Judge]

It is obvious that this vile corrupt government is fully responsible for the recent bad weather. Nothing like this ever happened under the Tories.

[Panic Button]

No, it was those foreigners what done it

[Postdog]

Yes I agree. The influx of those entering the country and bringing bad weather with them.

[LoftyLottie]

Whilst I agree that noone can predict such awful rainstorms, I do actually understand what you are saying Everton. Fortunately, I have ditches to the front and back of my property and they are maintained by the farmer. But this has nothing to do with privatisation.

The river however is in a dreadful state and highway maintenance and drains are sadly neglected.

[Panic Button]

No ditch, whether maintained or not, could cope with a foot of rainfall in a day.

[joggerjayne]

Buying ground level properties is just asking for trouble.

If everyone lived in flats, like me, they wouldn't have these problems.

[Rev Sermon]

I blame Enid Blyton and her golliwogs!

[LoftyLottie]

Very true Panic Button. But everton is correct about land management these days.

[joggerjayne]

They should all move to the seaside.

The water would just drain off down the beach, into the sea.

[craft1948]

York must be the most regularly flooded city in the country.........even with the latest flood barriers in place it's still a regular occurence so no idea what the answer is......

[R1Geezer]

great I was expecting a hosepipe ban any day soon.

[jno]

I think climate change is responsible for much of the flooding (though I have seen it suggested that it is all a conspiracy and a myth): there's simply been a lot more of it than there used to be, which suggests more and different planning will be needed in future years than in the past. It might be an idea to stop building on floodplains (is John Prescott still going ahead with his Thames Gateway dwelling-in-a-lake scheme?) and to lean on insurance companies to offer proper cover to those who are already stuck there.

But there's also been a huge shift away from Britain being an agricultural economy, as you suggest. I don't know how much of a role this plays. It's the flooding in towns that causes the human problems. Do you think better management of farmland might alleviate it? You could be right, I don't know.

[ABerrant]

The current Government has always paid lip service to their commitment towards Flood Defence Management (such a commitment being a prerequisite for the ABI to continue to offer domestic and business insurance coverage within floodplains) but it took 12 years for the Flood and Water Management Bill to finally appear in the Queen's Speech last week.

[Veggibear]

It's the driveways wot did it!

[tamborine]

the ground is compacted from prolonged summer dryness that the rain cant soak in & just floods above.

Look at your atlas to see how small this island is against the rest of the world.

Global warming- phooooey!

[Panic Button]

Prologed summer dryness?

In Cumria?