Tell Council Your Views On Flooding Hotspots

Published on: 22 Dec, 2013
Updated on: 24 Dec, 2013

Do you know of any flooding hotspots in your local area? Guildford Borough Council (GBC) is asking residents for their feedback on a report pinpointing the areas that are vulnerable to flooding and the plans to tackle it.

Localised flooding on the Shalford Road

GBC’s lead councillor for environment, Cllr Matt Furniss, said: “The Surface Water Management Plan shows the areas in the borough that are at risk of flooding from surface water. It also outlines the long-term plans that we and our partners are proposing to carry out to manage surface water in areas at risk.

“We’re asking local people if they know of any other areas that are prone to flooding and if they have any comments or feedback on the proposals.

“Carried out by independent specialists, consulting engineers Halcrow Group, the Surface Water Management Plan will help us and our partners to better understand flooding from surface water. It will also help identify cost- effective actions to manage flood risk. The council will also use the document to inform the production of the new Local Plan.”

In the plan, ‘surface water’ refers to:

Water flowing on the surface as a result of high intensity rainfall
Flooding and overland flows originating from groundwater
Sewer flooding when it is a result of heavy rainfall
Flooding from open-channel and culverted watercourses that receive most of their flow from inside the urban area
Water that flows on the surface from rural areas into urban areas.

Guildford Borough Council, Surrey County Council, the Environment Agency, Thames Water and Network Rail are working together on this project.

People can find out more and have their say:

Using an online form at www.guildford.gov.uk/surfacewaterfeedback
By email: engineeringservices@guildford.gov.u
By phone on 01483 444506
By post: Guildford Borough Council, Engineering and Transportation Services, Woking Road Depot, Woking Road, Guildford GU1 1QE.

The closing date is January 31, 2014.