Agenda and minutes

None.

None.

The minutes to the meeting held 24 February were agreed.

Vicky Boorman and Peter Oliver attended the meeting to present the report and answer questions from the Committee.

Officers informed the Committee that the length of the document was a result of government policy stipulations of the content. Local authorities lead on ground and surface water, but main rivers are not within the remit of the Council. The report included modelling work to examine what might happen in certain circumstances, and appropriate risk mitigation or counteraction measures.

The report was not aimed at residents, but was only the first step in establishing the strategy, and the responsibilities for the Council, Thames Water and other parties such as the Highways Agency. However, the report did include direction for finding information relevant for residents, and the current information of the website would be adapted as the strategy was implemented. The strategy had been through a consultation with the public, and had been recently approved by the Cabinet.

Members enquired about what was expected from the general public, to which officers reported that they hoped residents would use the information to understand whether they lived in an area considered at risk, and what information is available. Members raised the point that though the resources available on the website were highly beneficial, residents may not know that they were there or not be internet users, and requested that consideration be given to pre-emptively providing information in a different format, for example in Hillingdon People or more localised information for at risk areas.

A Member of the Committee enquired as to how lessons from recent major flooding were incorporated, to which Officers responded that reports from these areas had been circulated and considered. However, in practice they had only limited relevance because they were in rural areas of steep valleys, whereas Hillingdon is a relatively flat, urban environment. Hillingdon was did not have large areas that were particularly at risk of flooding, but rather small pockets within lots of different communities.

In response to a query regarding the impact of building in the borough and in particular increased developments with basements, officers informed the Committee that though this did represent a potential problem, there were already measures taken by the Council in communication with Thames Water and the Environment Agency to anticipate this and mitigate any problems.

Draft report to follow.

This item was deferred to the next meeting, though Members are invited to contact Alex Quayle with any comments on the draft circulated.

Noted.

Noted.

The Committee additionally discussed inviting a report on weed control in public green spaces in the Borough, and how refuse collection is timed to coincide with street litter picking.