March 2004

Fighting flooding – Consortium aims to tackle the rising risks

A key initiative to combat the growing threat of flooding in the UK is launched today (Wednesday 7th April) at the Institution of Civil Engineers, London.

The Flood-Risk Management Research Consortium (FRMRC) aims to generate sound science and innovative measures to predict and manage the risk of flooding. These measures are urgently needed because factors such as changes in land use and climate are likely to increase the frequency and severity of flooding in the future. It has been estimated that over 2 million homes are already at risk from river, coastal or sewer flooding in the UK.

The launch of the consortium will be hosted by Elliott Morley MP, Minister for Environment & Agri-Environment, who will also deliver the keynote address. The event will include a Question Time session, where journalists and others attending will be able to ask those involved in the consortium about its aims and plans.

The Flood-Risk Management Research Consortium is a collaborative initiative between the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), the Defra/ Environment Agency Joint R&D Programme on Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management, the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), the Scottish Executive, and UK Water Industry Research (UKWIR). Together the partners will provide more than £5.5 million in funding to establish and support the work of the consortium over the next 4 years.

The consortium will carry out research in leading UK universities, consultancies and research institutes, in collaboration with the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB), water companies, the Welsh Assembly, the Met Office and other high-profile organisations. A key aim is to promote a multidisciplinary approach to meeting the research challenges that will be faced.

In the short term, results from the consortium will feed into a range of guidance and other tools to assist those involved in flood-risk management. In the long term, it will strengthen the UK's science and engineering base in flood research.

The launch event will provide a high-level forum for debate between those involved in undertaking, using and funding flood-related research in the UK. It will be attended by representatives from Government agencies, local authorities, industry, academia, the service sector and those affected by flooding.

Notes for Editors

Registration for the event will commence at 09.30. The Question Time session for journalists (in the Stephenson room) will begin at 09.45 and last around 30 minutes.

To attend the Launch or the Question Time session, please reply to this e-mail, providing the following details:

Name:
Organisation:
Contact e-mail:
Contact telephone number:
Would you like to attend the whole event: Yes/No
Would you like to attend the Question Time session only: Yes/No

Launch Agenda:

09:30

09:45

10:30

10:40

11:00

11:15

11:30

11:45

12:00

13:15

Venue information: The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) is located at One Great George Street, Westminster, London, SW1P 3AA (between Parliament Square and St James's Park). The nearest tube station is Westminster. The mainline train stations Waterloo, Charing Cross and Victoria are also nearby. For more information on how to get to the ICE, visit the website at http://www.ice.org.uk/contact/howtofindus.asp

The Flood-Risk Management Research Consortium will focus on six key research areas: Land-Use Management, Real-Time Flood Forecasting, Flood Defence Infrastructure, Towards Whole Systems Modelling, Urban Flood Management, and Stakeholders & Policy. These will be supported by two cross-cutting themes: Morphology & Habitat and Risk & Uncertainty.

A users' perspective of these research areas is given in Issue No 5 of Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Research News, produced by Defra and the Environment Agency. See http://www.defra.gov.uk/environ/fcd/research/newslett/issue5.pdf

The core team of researchers involved in the consortium consists of:

Professor Ian Cluckie (University of Bristol)
Professor Garry Pender (Heriot-Watt University)
Professor Colin Thorne (University of Nottingham)
Dr Joe Howe (University of Manchester)
Professor Adrian Saul (University of Sheffield)
Professor Howard Wheater (Imperial College)
Dr Paul Sayers (HR Wallingford)
Professor Stephen Huntington (HR Wallingford)
Professor Keith Beven (University of Lancaster)

For more information on the consortium partners, visit the following websites:

- Department for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra): www.defra.gov.uk/
- Environment Agency: www.environment-agency.gov.uk/
- Natural Environment Research Council (NERC): www.nerc.ac.uk/
- The Scottish Executive: www.scotland.gov.uk/
- UK Water Industry Research (UKWIR): www.ukwir.co.uk/

The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) is the UK's main agency for funding research in engineering and the physical sciences. The EPSRC invests more than £500 million a year in research and postgraduate training, to help the nation handle the next generation of technological change. The areas covered range from information technology to structural engineering, and mathematics to materials science. This research forms the basis for future economic development in the UK and improvements for everyone's health, lifestyle and culture. EPSRC also actively promotes public awareness of science and engineering. EPSRC works alongside other Research Councils with responsibility for other areas of research. The Research Councils work collectively on issues of common concern via Research Councils UK. Website address for more information on EPSRC: www.epsrc.ac.uk/

For more information, contact:

Jane Reck, EPSRC Press Officer, Tel: 179-344-4312, E-mail: [email protected]