Flood Risk Management Policy
Flood Management Policies
The Environment Agency's flood management policy is to protect people and property against flooding, be it by rivers or the sea. The powers bestowed upon the Agency to build, improve and maintain defences, as Operating Bodies is permissive. This means that works will only be carried out where they are deemed to be economically, environmentally and hydrodynamically sustainable.

In the Anglian region, the Environment Agency has to contend with a wide variety of fluvial, estuarine and coastal issues. In the region, varying coastlines exist from the sand dunes of North Norfolk , to the shingle beaches and spits of Suffolk and finally the salt marshes and mudflats of Essex.

In response to differing coastal environments there are a variety of flood management policies available to the flood management teams.

Hold the line
This flood management policy involves, through intervention, hold the existing line of defence where it is, which may involve either maintaining, sustaining or improving the flood defence. Due to sea level rise it may demand substantial modifications or reconstruction.

Advance the line
This policy involves the construction of a new flood management scheme in front of existing flood defences.

 
No Active Intervention
There would be no further active intervention by the Environment Agency. Without intervention the defences would eventually fail and areas currently protected from flooding would no longer be protected. This would happen gradually over a long period of time. However, land owners may be entitled to pay for the continued maintenance of the flood defences or undertake maintenance themselves following the preparation of an Exit Strategy.

Managed Realignment
The policy of Managed Realignment involves the placement of a new Managed Realignment flood defence landward of the existing flood defences or realignment to higher ground. Depending on the elevation of the land in relation to high water, the site can then revert to mud flat or salt marsh.

This policy would be achieved through the partial or complete removal of the existing flood defences or through regulated tidal exchange. Regulated tidal exchange allows the land behind the defence to be slowly converted to salt marsh favourable conditions in preparation for salt marsh creation. Reversing the flow through the drainage sluice allows the controlled flow of seawater to inundate the site. This process alters the soil chemistry, allows siltation to take place, permits local species to adjust and encourages a salt marsh seed bank to develop.

This policy would be gradually implemented and regularly monitored in order to study any potential effects on the overall estuary shape.

Sustainable Policies
Given the current and predicted rates of sea level rise for this coast it has become increasingly difficult to justify building walls higher and higher to keep the sea out. The Agency is therefore endeavouring to find more sustainable approaches to flood management to try and help solve some of the increasing pressures on our coasts and estuaries, e.g. Managed Realignment.

Sustainable flood management policies have to look at strategic planning of our coasts and estuaries and Managed Realignment is simply one option that can be considered. There will always be locations that must be protected by traditional hard defences. Managed Realignment can also be seen as important in terms of creating new habitats, providing new recreational areas, and producing local economic gain.

It is hoped that by adopting Managed Realignment policies in some estuary and coastal locations, some of the tidal energy and wave energy can be removed sufficiently to reduce coastal erosion and flooding elsewhere.