I isn’t raining as I write but the forcast for the next few hours and days is not looking good. Water levels in the Frome and Canal were running high both last night and this afternoon when I visited my Stroud Town Ward. Futher rain could cause mayhem for the residents and businesses in that area.
Flooding is occuring more frequently and on a larger scale than in living memory. Extreme weather conditions are nothing new but several flood events in six months has left us all wondering just how much of the damage is due to Climate Change and what can WE do about it?
Simple things (you would thing they would be simple…) such as clearing drains, dredging the canal (still hasn’t happened) and clearing blockages, just have not happened.
Its not rocket science.
The way we live impacts on our future. And our present. Intensive farming techniques have altered run off characteristics in our countryside. This makes flash flooding more servre. Bad Town Planning in the past has limited flood attenuation. Government agencies ‘passing the buck’ doesn’t get us anywhere. How many people know what ‘Riperian Landlord’ means?
So I pray that the floods will pass with as little damage as possible. I hope that I can be effective in working with commited others in limiting future events. But we all have to try and do our bit…..