Effectiveness of UK and EC policy and legislation in addressing flood risk and climate change

Range of options for managing flood risk

All around the world, choices have to be made on a number of levels if future flood risk is to be well managed and responsible flood managers are to work within the economic, political and institutional constraints of the day. Within those constraints, Governments must decide on the risk of flooding they are prepared to accept. In effect they can choose from a range of options:

(a) Maintain current flood policies and expenditure, accept reduced standards of flood protection and hence a substantial increase in flood risk, and live with the increase in expected annual economic damage.

(b) Reduce flood risk by the application of a portfolio of flood response measures to levels at or similar to the present.

(c) Reduce flood risk further, which may be difficult in economic and sustainability terms under some scenarios, but feasible under others.

As the range of options above demonstrate, the choices for government and other accountable stakeholders in managing flood risk are complex and it is therefore the aim of this assignment to investigate the effectiveness of the policies and associated legislation which have been put in place to manage flood risk scenarios.   

On successful completion of the module, the student should be able to:

Investigate and critically evaluate the effectiveness of UK and EC policy and legislation which is  

designed to address flood risk amid concerns related to climate change.  

The diagram below shows the degree of control by government over different drivers of flood risk (with responses to flood risk lying towards the right-hand side).

Using the diagram as a framework for your written content, critically analyse and evaluate the potential effectiveness of UK and EC policy and legislation in addressing flood risk amid concerns related to climate change. Include examples of how legislation is implemented by responsible bodies at local, regional, and/or national level and how recent changes in approach might affect how they act in the future.      

Resources & Reference Materials

Module lecture support notes, including UK and EC legislation and implications for stakeholders; Civil Contingencies Act 2004, Flood and Water Management Act 2010, EC Directives, including EU Floods Directive 200760/EC on the assessment and management of flood risks, Planning Policy Statement 25: Development and Flood Risk, Draft Flood and Management Bill, Recommendations made in the 2007 Pitt Review, Roles and responsibilities for flood defence and risk management in the UK, Overview of methods for implementation; Environment Agency, Local Authorities, Local Area Agreements, DEFRA, British Waterways, The National Adaptation Programme 2013, National Flood Resilience Review 2016.  

The assignment will be in either essay or report format, approximately 2000 words in length, conforming to appropriate written assignment standards. Dividing the submission into sections by using sub-headings makes presentation and reading easier; and a robust conclusion (drawing on arguments presented in your writing) is a vital element. Reference sources can be freely drawn on, but remember to cite the source(s) used, and identify them properly in the References section.