Projects built despite flood risk on increase, warns UK's Environment Agency

Telegraph (UK): The Environment Agency objected to 6,200 planning applications in 2007/08 on the grounds of flood risk, up from 4,750 the previous year. The majority of developers changed plans to minimise flood risk, for example by ensuring better drainage or changing the position of buildings.

However 16 major developments went ahead against the Environment Agency's advice, including six schemes wholly in areas at the highest risk of flooding. The schemes included more than 200 houses and apartments, schools, offices, a business park and plans for a new ferry terminal in Liverpool.

Environmentalists said developers are playing "Russian Roulette" with people's homes while insurers warned the properties will be "uninsurable, unsellable and uninhabitable". Paul Leinster, chief executive of the Environment Agency, was concerned the developments are at risk of flooding. "We're pleased that most councils take our flood risk advice in relation to planning decisions, but are concerned that a minority of decisions go against our advice."…

Merrimack, UK, flooded in 2006, shot by MasterB1021, Wikimedia Commons, under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.2