The Environment Agency has issued an apology to flood affected residents and businesses in Bradford on Avon ahead of the Flood Forum on Monday 21 July.
Environment Agency apology
Ian Withers, the Environment Agency’s Wessex Area Director said: “I would like to reassure residents and businesses in Bradford on Avon about the EA’s position on mitigating the risk of flooding in the town.
“Recent news coverage may have misrepresented the agency’s firm commitment to working with partners, residents and traders in Bradford on Avon. This follows our announcement to focus on community resilience measures rather than a permanent flood scheme.
“While a permanent flood scheme isn’t currently viable for Bradford on Avon, the Environment Agency will be working with Wiltshire Council and Bradford on Avon Town Council to support the community through targeted flood resilience measures that respect the town’s historic character.
“Residents, business owners and the public can come and understand more about temporary and permanent flood protection options and about how we make decisions about the viability of flood schemes at our drop-in session on Monday 21 July at Holy Trinity Church from 2pm to 6.30pm. Our flood experts and Flood Mary will be in attendance to answer questions.
“The comments presented in Mondays news coverage do not represent the EA’s position for this community.
“These comments were taken from part of a broader discussion with the journalist about dealing with the threat of flooding by means of a range of measures and approaches, and as part of a prepared flood plan. These comments certainly do not reflect our relationship with and understanding of the community, especially given that many of the residents and businesses have historically installed their own flood resilience measures at their own expense.
“Therefore, I would like to apologise if this messaging caused distress; I was personally disappointed that the position I explained to the journalist in an interview of nearly ten minutes, which aligned closely with our briefing note previously published by the town council, was not fairly presented in the coverage.
“I appreciate that there is a significant amount of knowledge and experience of flooding over many decades within this community, and I look forward to this being part of a productive and important discussion with the professional partners during the drop-in event next week.”
Flood Forum details
The drop-in forum is your chance to speak with representatives from the Environment Agency, Wiltshire Council and Wessex Water about flooding, community flood resilience and their future plans.
The event will take place from 2pm to 6.30pm on Monday 21 July in Holy Trinity Church.
Recently, we asked people to submit questions and we plan to publish answers to those questions ahead of the Flood Forum.
Environment Agency briefing note