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Work set to begin on next phase of £11m Hessle Foreshore Tidal Defence Scheme

Date
Tue, 12 May 2020
Article

Work is due to start on the next phase of the £11m Hessle Foreshore Tidal Defence Scheme.

The East Riding of Yorkshire Council project will include the construction of a 465-metre long, 1m-high glass and concrete wall along Cliff Road, Hessle, to help shield the area from flooding caused by tidal surges along the Humber.

Preparation work began last week with construction work due to start later this month.

The work is due to continue until late spring next year.

When completed, the scheme will reduce the risk of flooding to more than 4,000 homes and businesses in the Hessle and West Hull areas.

The project would also reduce the risk of flooding to the A63, a major trunk road in and out of Hull, the main Hull railway line, electrical substations, and water and sewerage facilities.

The work is being jointly funded with grants from the Environment Agency (FDGiA), the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (ERDF) and the Humber Local Enterprise Partnership's Local Growth Fund Programme.

Dave Waudby, head of infrastructure and facilities at East Riding of Yorkshire Council, said: "The work will be carried out in sections along the foreshore to minimise the impact on residents.

"However the construction will cause some traffic delays along Cliff Road and parking along the foreshore will be restricted throughout the scheme, so we would urge people to avoid the area as much as possible.

"With the lockdown and social distancing in place this shouldn't cause too much of an issue just at the moment, but we'd like to thank people for their patience while this work is carried out."

Work on the first section of the scheme began in January this year with the construction of a 600m long, 1 metre-high concrete barrier along the westbound stretch of the A63 Clive Sullivan Way, which is being carried out by Highways England.

The next stages will now be carried out by council contractor Interserve Construction Ltd and will include:

  • The construction of a 1-metre-high glass and concrete wall along the southern side of Cliff Road, Hessle. The wall will include flood gates at various points which can be closed during a tidal surge event.

  • The raising of the road underneath the Humber Bridge to tie in with the concrete barrier as it passes under the bridge.

A further stage of the tidal defence scheme will be a series of improvements to the sluice structure on the Fleet Drain at Hessle Clough which includes raising the existing wall by one meter to reduce the risk of overtopping during a tidal surge.

This stage of the works will be carried out by another council contractor ESH Construction and works will commence on this part of the site later in May 2020.

Councillor Chris Matthews, portfolio holder for strategic management at East Riding of Yorkshire Council, said: "I am extremely pleased work is starting on this major tidal defence project.

"When the whole scheme is complete it will help to minimise the risk of flooding to thousands of properties in Hessle and west Hull, which have suffered the effects of tidal surges before, the last one being in 2013."

Dean Hamblin, the Environment Agency's senior flood risk advisor for the East Riding, said: "This work on Hessle Foreshore is a key flood risk management scheme and links with the Environment Agency's £42 million Humber Hull Frontage scheme to the East.

"Together they will help reduce the risk of flooding to more than 100,000 properties in the city and form part of a wider £200 million investment in flood defence work across the East Riding of Yorkshire and Hull."

Jim Wilkinson, associate director of Interserve Construction, said: "We are looking forward to working with East Riding of Yorkshire Council in helping them to provide flood resilience to this region.

"This is an ambitious and much-need project for the area around Hessle and the works will be completed using innovative silent piling techniques to minimise disruption to the local residents and will minimise waste by recycling more than 50% of the excavated materials."

Stephen Parnaby OBE, chair of the Humber LEP, said: "We are proud to support this key flood risk management scheme with an allocation of £2m from the Local Growth Fund.

"As illustrated by past events, this area is at risk from tidal surges and the LEP are pleased to see work begin on the next stage of protecting both businesses and residents in the Hessle area."

Hessle Foreshore is a low lying area which suffered significant flooding in the tidal surge of December, 2013. There was internal flooding to 40 residential and 44 commercial properties, up to one metre in depth.

Predictions suggest that such flooding events are likely to happen more often in the future, because of increases in sea levels caused by climate change.

Extensive flood modelling has been undertaken which shows that a larger area is at risk of tidal flooding, therefore putting more properties at risk.

The Hessle Foreshore Tidal Defence Scheme aims to reduce the risk of flooding caused by tidal surges in Hessle and West Hull over the next 50 years.

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