The next phase of the Environment Agency's Lustrum Beck flood scheme is complete - and helped protect homes in Stockton-On-Tees during Storm Christoph
New natural flood management features have helped protect a Teesside town from flooding just weeks after they were completed.
Three storage basins designed to hold back flood water upstream at Coatham Wood and reduce river levels in Stockton-on-Tees successfully filled up during heavy rain as Storm Christoph swept across the region.
The temporary storage areas then slowly drained the water back into Coatham Beck, a tributary of Stockton’s Lustrum Beck, as the rain eased.
The upstream natural flood management features, completed last month, represent the latest phase of the innovative project to reduce the risk of flooding to 150 homes in Stockton.
They work hand in hand with multi-million pound town centre flood defences which were constructed together with Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council in 2017 as part of the government’s continued investment in flood defences.
The government last year announced a record investment of £5.2bn to better protect 336,000 properties, through the creation of around 2,000 new flood and coastal defences, in England by 2027.
The trees planted as part of the natural flood management scheme will form part of a Forestry Commission woodland management plan to provide a diverse, sustainable habitat.
The Environment Agency will return to the site when the weather improves to carry out ground restoration work and re-seeding in time for Spring. It’s also investigating opportunities for further upstream storage as part of the project.
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Posted On: 29/01/2021