The Environment Agency has published its annual report and accounts for the financial year 2016 to 2017 which covers the EA's 3 main business areas - flood and coastal erosion risk management, water, land and biodiversity, and regulated business.
As at 31 March 2017 the EA had around 11,000 full time equivalent employees in place and annual expenditure for the financial year ending 31 March 2017 was £1.3 billion. The Department for Environment,Food and Rural Affairs (Defra), the government department that is responsible for EA activities, provides most of its funding.
Of the total expenditure, £422m (32%) was funded from external income with the remaining funding coming in the form of grant in aid from Defra. Net expenditure for the year was £897 million.
Activities highlighted in the report include:
Rivers, lakes and coastal waters
The Agency has exceeded its target for this financial year thanks to a range of projects, including the restoration of river habitats, removal of barriers to fish migration and improvements to water quality. This includes work done with and by catchment partners and other stakeholders. The EA has concentrated work on the places identified for improvement in the updated river basin management plans.
The report says the EA has also worked hard to prevent deterioration and maintain the quality of the water environment, describing it as "a significant commitment which represents a real long-term challenge.”
The Agency is now building on the experience of this first year of reporting and has set more stretching targets for next year, enabling it to work with others to reach the longer-term target of enhancing at least 8,000km of rivers between the publication of the updated river basin management plans and the end of 2021.
Reducing serious pollution incidents
The number of serious and significant pollution incidents (known as category 1 and 2) has reduced this financial year. The incidents are now at the lowest levels since 2011. According to the report, this is as a result of concentrating on reducing incidents in the 'top 5' regulatory sectors (water companies, agriculture, non-hazardous waste, biowaste treatment and use and landfill) which together account for 32% of all category 1 and 2 pollution incidents.
Flood defences
Over the last financial year the Agency has protected over 42,000 more homes from flooding and repaired and improved the flood defences damaged in the winter of 2015 to 2016.
This year also saw work beginning on new flood schemes as part of the 6-year flood and coastal risk management investment programme, driven by the use of innovative measures and natural flood management. Examples of schemes completed include those at Willerby and Derringham, and Littlestone Beach, helping to protect over 10,000 homes.
The Willerby and Derringham Flood Alleviation Scheme, one of the most significant projects completed this financial year, has protected 6,695 homes. Previously, during extreme rainfall, the accumulation of agricultural runoff in the valley combined with the volume of water in the open watercourse would cause the local homes and businesses to flood.
The scheme introduced storage reservoirs and lagoons in the valley to manage excessive flows, releasing the water into the urban drainage system at a slower rate to avoid flooding.
The Littlestone Beach Recharge, where the EA built up the beach bank to protect the sea wall from damage, has protected over 3,800 homes.
During the year the Agency achieved its national target of 97% of Environment Agency maintained flood defence assets at the required condition in high consequence systems - groups of flood defence assets in a location where there would be significant impacts to people and property if the assets failed. The 3% of assets that are below target condition continue to provide protection against flooding - the report says the EA will continue to monitor them closely until they are repaired.
The EA has increased the number of assets above the required condition by over 300 this financial year - a result of increased funding in flood defence asset management directly allocated to where it has the greatest benefit, such as assets that are below the required condition.
Partnership working
The report also highlights the Agency’s continued partnership work with other risk management authorities to deliver its 6-year capital investment programme to reduce flood risk to people and property. The programme aims to better protect at least 300,000 households, up to 700,000 acres of agricultural land, over 200 miles of railway and 340 miles of roads.
The EA has achieved £100 million in partnership funding for flood and coastal risk management projects this financial year. Together with £445.9m of expenditure of capital Flood Defence Grant-in-Aid budget, the report says the funding contributed towards better protecting an estimated 42,500 homes from flooding in 2016 to 2017.
Click here to download the Environment Agency Annual Report & Accounts 2016-17.
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