Work is getting underway this week on an innovative £40 million project to upgrade vital flood defences in Great Yarmouth which involves refurbishing 4 kilometres of flood defence walls across the town.

Environment Minster Rebecca Pow MP and Environment Agency Chair, Emma Howard Boyd, joined local partners to mark the start of work on the major scheme which will see thousands of homes and businesses better protected from tidal flooding for decades to come.

Photo: Environment Minister Rebecca Pow and Environment Agency Chair Emma Howard Boyd visiting the project work site

The work, which is expected to complete next year, will upgrade the level of protection from tidal flooding to more than 4,500 homes and businesses in the local area. The refurbishment works will extend the working life of the existing defences, and the new innovative construction methods being used will significantly reduce the carbon footprint of the project.

Great Yarmouth has a history of flooding, during the 1953 east coast tidal surge, the tidal river defences in the town were breached in several places resulting in a tragic loss of life.

More recently, in December 2013, approximately 9,000 people were urged to evacuate their homes as a result of the highest ever recorded tide in Great Yarmouth.

The project will see 46 flood defence walls refurbished at locations across the town using an innovative technique that will extend their lifespan by up to 30 years.

The refurbishment follows on from an initial five-year phase of work which included the use of a specialised dam to inspect and repair the steel sheet piles that form the flood walls.

Emma Howard Boyd, Chair of the Environment Agency said:

“This important project will upgrade over 4km of coastal defences for Great Yarmouth and the surrounding area, better protecting over 4,500 homes and businesses from tidal flooding.

“This scheme is a prime example of how we are taking a long-term collaborative approach to tackling both the causes and the impacts of the climate emergency, ensuring that communities, homes and infrastructure are more resilient to the additional risks that the future will bring.”

The £40.3 million investment, plus £6.2 million for ongoing maintenance, has come from a range of sources including £32.4 million provided by central government.

Partnership contributions have come from New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership, £8.2 million through the Growth Deal programme, and £2.8 million from the Anglian Eastern Regional Flood & Coastal Committee.

Norfolk County Council and Great Yarmouth Borough Council have also contributed towards the project and local quayside businesses are supporting through contributions and the provision of compound space.

The project forms part of the Environment Agency’s £2.6 billion investment in flood and coastal defences, spanning from 2015-2021, to better protect over 300,000 homes from the risk of flooding.

Cllr Carl Smith, leader of Great Yarmouth Borough Council, said:

“The River Yare Tidal Defences are a huge benefit to everyone who lives in, works in and visits our borough, reducing flood risk to our homes, workplaces, and the highways and other vital infrastructure that we use every day, better protecting communities and helping the borough to realise its full economic potential.

Together with the Environment Agency and local businesses, the borough council has played an instrumental role over the years in securing this crucial and most welcome investment from multiple sources, helping with lobbying and developing the robust business case. I’m pleased that work is under way on the second phase.”

Chair of the Anglian Eastern RFCC , Paul Hayden OBE, explained that the RFCC £2.8m contribution to these works had come from a Local Levy collected across Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Southend and Thurrock.