Stockport Council will be pressed to take more radical steps and become better prepared for the increased threat of flooding, after agreeing a motion tabled by two of Stockport’s Green Councillors at the Council Meeting on January 16th.
Councillor Liz Crix, proposing the motion, said: “Recent events have shown that we need to be much better prepared for heavy rainfall and flooding in Stockport…..We need to continue tackling climate change and nature loss and climate experts agree that we increasingly need to adapt and prepare against extreme weather events, which our failure to reach net zero make increasingly likely.”
“Addressing the limits of our existing drainage system will help, and I understand that this Council has applied for funding to upgrade its drains. However a lot of the recent flooding was caused by high water levels on our rivers. ….Rivers rose to unprecedented levels, and it is likely that heavier rainfalls will cause them to rise even higher in the future. We need to be prepared. We need to expect the unexpected. “
“This leads to my first resolution point – for the Council to recognise the increasing threat and take more radical steps to improve our preparedness for flooding events. This may involve identifying or creating areas where floodwater can flow into or be absorbed by.”
“The government has set Stockport an ambitious home building target. Preparing the Stockport Plan includes identifying potential development sites. Building on flood risk areas exposes new and existing buildings to risk. New builds can be protected to a certain extent by measures such as sustainable drainage, rain gardens, permeable paving and urban greening. “
“However this may not be enough, and existing buildings may also suffer if existing areas which absorb rain are built on. This leads to my second resolution point: that potential flood risk areas are identified in the emerging Stockport plan, and that measures to ensure resilience to flooding take place before buildings are erected on at risk sites.”
The motion, amended by Labour to include a review of grids and gully maintenance can be read here.
It was passed unanimously.