Lincolnshire County Council is calling on the government to make more funding available to help the county deal with the effects of climate change after more than 100 properties were flooded in the recent heavy rain.
Almost 40 of these properties are thought to have also been affected by the heavy rainfall during storms Babet or Henk previously.
Nearly 1,000 homes and businesses were flooded in total in October 2023 and January 2024 during those two storms. Lincolnshire County Council carried out 264 separate ‘Section 19’ flood investigations to determine the contributing factors to the flooding.
These investigations suggest recommended actions that various organisations and communities could take to reduce the risk and impacts of flooding in the future.
Where possible, the county council took immediate action to address the recommendations, including further jetting of drains, increasing capacity of our drains through new projects, and engaging with landowners about their responsibilities.
The council says it has no powers to force any other organisation or individual to carry out repairs, and many simply do not have the funding or resources to carry out their actions quickly. Cllr Colin Davie, executive councillor for environment at Lincolnshire County Council, explains: “Hearing that some properties have flooded twice – during Babet or Henk and again this week – is completely devastating, and whilst we’ve done what we can to better prepare the county for heavy rainfall – following the recommendations in our Section 19 investigations – there’s simply not been enough time or enough funding for all organisations to make the identified improvements.
“In some areas, we understand that watercourses reached or even exceeded the levels they rose to during storms Babet and Henk, and they were considered exceptional at the time. Ultimately, there is no getting away from the fact that the amount of rainfall we’ve seen this week, falling on saturated ground, is going to cause issues in some places without serious extra investment from the government.
“As well as trying to reduce the impacts of climate change in the future, there must be plans put in place to address the impacts of climate change that we are feeling in Lincolnshire, and across the country, now.”
The county council completed two major drainage schemes in 2024 in Brant Broughton and Hough on the Hill, and work is ongoing on two more schemes in Kirkby on Bain and Long Bennington.
Cllr Colin Davie continues:
“Together, these four schemes alone represent an investment by the county council of more than £1.5m in better protecting Lincolnshire in periods of heavy rain. And, since April, our highways teams have completed 672 drainage-clearing jobs, focussing on areas that were most severely affected by the previous storms, in readiness for something like the events of this week.
“Much of the flooding was caused by the sheer amount of water that was just too much and caused overtopping on local watercourses. Protecting these will require extra investment and intervention from the Environment Agency and other partners.
“In some areas, drains were also overloaded causing surface water flooding. This is why we’re working hard to improve the drainage systems in areas prone to flooding, and work with other landowners to make sure all parts of the system are working properly. All of which takes time and investment.”
