PLANNING FOR FLOOD RISK IN THE FENS

The fens of eastern England rely on flood defences for their existence, and planning for flood risk has always had a high priority. A new focus was given with the issue of Planning Policy Guidance 25, and this paper presents experience from a Strategic Flood Risk Assessment of South Holland District, in Lincolnshire. The assessment pioneered the examination of fenland flood risk in terms of risk zones related to flood hazard and standard of protection. Methods for evaluating the risk zones are described; they consider flooding from embanked rivers which are subject to tide locking, internal drainage systems, tide level and wave action. The methods would be appropriate for many lowland areas of the UK where conventional flood analysis cannot be used.     

Integrated Environmental Planning for Sustainable Development: The Environment Agency's Role

The Environment Agency is midway through a programme of 'local environment agency plans' for all of England and Wales by the Millennium. To complement them, the Agency has published two overarching plans - one of which is regional and the other sub-regional in scale. 'Thames Environment 21' and 'The North Wessex Plan' deal with the potential impact of development pressures and their consequent implications for the environment. Both give practical expression to the Agency's environmental strategy for the Millennium, which concentrates on issues of direct concern to local planning authorities, e.g. addressing climate change, improving air quality, managing water resources, managing waste and enhancing biodiversity.     

From Manchester Docks to Salford Quays: Ten Years of Environmental Improvements in the Mersey Basin Campaign

The decline of the former Manchester Docks and its resurgence as Salford Quays is described. The isolation of water within the Quays from the Manchester Ship Canal was a principal proposal of the development plan, and the water-treatment system which was installed has been highly successful in creating a thriving aquatic ecosystem and enabling water-based recreation activities to take place. Whilst the water quality within the Quays is excellent, outside in the Manchester Ship Canal it remains grossly polluted. Under the auspices of the Mersey Basin campaign, the various partners are involved in a major project to clean up the canal. The Lowry Centre, a Millennium Fund bid, is giving an added impetus to this work. The conclusions identify the involvement of the local council as being critical to the success of the project, and that a respect for quality has been essential, as has a long-term commitment to an overall vision.     

Environmental Auditing in the Public Sector: The Lancashire Experience

Lancashire County Council was one of the first local authorities in the UK to audit the environment of its locality and to review the environmental impact of its operations. The paper outlines the reasons for this and how it has been put into effect. The management structure devised to carry forward and coordinate the initiative is outlined first, encompassing elements internal to the County Council and the establishment of a Lancashire Environment Forum. Secondly, the preparation of a county-wide state-of-the-environment audit is described, together with the implementation stages which have ensued. The paper is completed by an account of the County Council's internal review of the impact of its own activities.     

Energy conservation and solar heating of a school at Port Isaac

The application of increased energy conservation standards and of solar energy to an educational project—as opposed to the more frequent domestic application—is the subject of this paper, which describes how these measures were applied to a new village school in Cornwall.

The solar panels were detached from the school building on a separate, simple rig as a more economic solution, which did not inhibit the design of the rest of the project with regard to educational requirement. The school building is a traditional form of structure, but with the performance of the various wall and roof elements increased to provide a superior energy conserving envelope.

As part of the UK National Solar Energy Research Programme the performance of the building is being monitored by the University of Bath, financed by a grant from the Department of Energy.     

Diversion of the River Calder at Welbeck: An Engineering and Environmental Challenge

The Welbeck reclamation and landfill project (near Wakefield) is reclaiming over 1.5 km² of former aggregate and colliery workings through the creation of a new landform. This is to incorporate millions of tonnes of colliery spoil and controlled (i.e. household, trade) wastes, and to avoid the need for disposal on less suitable sites elsewhere.
The scheme is already under way, but the proposed diversion of the River Calder to one side of the site would more than double its capacity for landfill. In environmental terms, the project has been seen as the creation of a new river corridor, rather than simply the diversion of a river channel.
The paper outlines the engineering of the river diversion, which is routed for about 2 km through varied and difficult ground conditions, and gives a number of examples of the priority attached to landscape and after-use factors, and their intrinsic importance in design.