FCRM10, the UK’s leading
flood and coastal risk management conference,
will be held at the International Conference
Centre, Telford between
29 June – 1 July 2010.
Now in its 45th year,
the joint Defra and Environment Agency flood
conference is the leading event of its kind
for flood and coastal management professionals.
The three-day long conference
will cover the spectrum of flood and coastal
erosion issues, with a strong emphasis on
the need to adapt to a changing climate
and balance new initiatives with increased
efficiency and financial responsibility.
Conference attendees
will be encouraged to explore new ways of
working together to share best practice,
innovative approaches and new technologies.
The opening session
of the conference will feature a number
of high profile speakers, including Paul
Leinster, Chief Executive of the Environment
Agency, and Mary Dhonau, Chief Executive
of the National Flood Forum.
The conference will
also provide UK flood management professionals
with an international perspective on flood
risk management. Peter Rabbon, of the US
Army Corp of Engineers, will give insight
into flood risks and management practices
in the US, and how lessons learnt across
the Atlantic can be applied in the UK.
Other conference highlights
include:
Learn first hand from
key Defra and Environment Agency staff what
the Flood and Water Management Act will
mean for you
Hear Cumbria County Council share their
experiences of the November 2009 floodsand
incident management practice
Share your experiences with other professionals
through informal discussions sessions on
a range of key topics including emergency
planning, coastal change and flood warnings
With over five million people and their
property at risk of flooding in England
and Wales, the conference will address how
to manage flood and coastal erosion risk,
prepare and protect people, property and
the environment.
FCRM10 brings together
academics, consultants and contractors to
stimulate ideas and discussion around the
future of flood and coastal risk management.
Those who have been affected by floods,
government representatives, NGOs and environmental
groups are also invited to attend.
All 55 stands in the
main exhibition hall have now been taken.
Companies exhibiting at the conference include
HR Wallingford, Atkins Global and Halcrow
Group Limited.
Robert Runcie, Director
of Flood for the Environment Agency said:
“FCRM10 provides industry professionals
with the chance to explore latest thinking
in the management of flood and coastal erosion
risk. This year will also provide the opportunity
to share best practice, practical demonstrations
and technology solutions.
“Ultimately this enables
industry professionals to better engage
people at risk to help them reduce the risk
of flooding and coastal erosion.”
Log on to http://www.hg3conference-secretariat.co.uk/ea/registration.aspx
to register and buy your conference package
before midnight on 1 June and save £100
on attendance rates.
Full FCRM10 Conference
Program attached.
ENDS
Media enquiries: 020 7863 8710. Outside
normal office hours, please contact the
National Duty Press Officer on 07798 882
092.
NOTES TO EDITORS:
FCRM10 Conference - Managing flood and coastal
erosion risk, preparing and protecting people
and property
International Conference
Centre, Telford
29 June – 1 July 2010
- Log on to http://www.hg3conference-secretariat.co.uk/ea/registration.aspx
to register and buy your conference package
before midnight on 1 June and save £100
on attendance rates.
A full three day package
is currently £332, or opt for a one-day
rate of £170.
Themes for each day
are:
Tuesday 29 June: new
directions in policy and investment
Wednesday 30 June: preparing for and responding
to flooding, and managing our assets
Thursday 1 July: assessing risk and where
to invest in defences.
Environment Agency consults
on energy from waste permit
Environment Agency consult
on an application for environmental permit
in Middlewich
An Environment Agency consultation is open
with regard to environmental permit application
submitted by Covanta. The normal consultation
period has been extended until 15 June 2010
due to the overlap with the general election.
The consultation covers an environmental
permit application submitted by Covanta
to run an energy from waste facility at
Midpoint 18, Middlewich.
On 26 April Cheshire
East Council refused Covanta planning permission
to build an energy from waste plant. The
company indicated that it intends to appeal
against this decision and is continuing
with its application to the Environment
Agency for an environmental permit. The
proposed plant would need both planning
permission and an environmental permit before
it could be operated.
The proposed energy
from waste facility would burn non-hazardous
municipal, commercial and industrial wastes
at high temperature and use the energy created
to generate electricity.
Environmental permits
include requirements to control potential
emissions to air, land and water, as well
as conditions for how an installation is
managed and operated. We will consider what,
if any, categories of waste could be processed,
and matters such as noise, vibration and
odour control The consultation on the permit
application by Covanta provides members
of the public with the opportunity to comment
on such issues. The consultation does not
relate to the planning issues for the site,
such as traffic movements, visual impact,
operating hours and light pollution.
We do not decide if,
where or how many facilities are built,
this is for the planning process to decide.
Any comments that you wish to make with
regard to an appeal by Covanta against the
refusal of planning permission would need
to be made as part of that appeal process.
Our role is to ensure
that any facility, if built, is designed
and operated to ensure a high level of protection
for the environment and human health. The
applicant also has to demonstrate that the
proposed facility meets the requirements
of the Environmental Permitting (England
and Wales) Regulations 2010. Best available
techniques should be employed in the design
and operation of the facility, and it must
be able to comply with stringent emission
controls.
Keith Ashcroft, Environment
Agency Area Manager said: “We appreciate
there is a high level of interest in this
application. We understand the importance
of consulting with members of the local
community, the local authority and the health
authority for their views of the potential
effect on the environment and public health.
An Environmental Permit will not be issued
if we believe that it will cause significant
pollution to the environment or harm the
health of adjacent communities.”
The permit consultation
period will currently run until 15 June
2010. Copies of all documents relating to
this installation are available to view
at the public registers, which are held
at:
Environmental Health
Cheshire East Council
Westfields
Middlewich Road
Sandbach
CW11 1HZ
Environment Agency
Appleton House
430 Birchwood Boulevard
Birchwood
Warrington
WA3 7WD
Electronic copies of
the application documents can also be viewed
during this initial consultation at Middlewich
Library, Lewin Street, Middlewich CW10 9AS
and Middlewich Town Council, Victoria Buildings,
Lewin Street, Middlewich, CW10 9AT.
Any comments on the application for permit
should be made in writing by 15 June 2010
to:
The Environment Agency
Permit Support Centre
Quadrant 2
PO Box 4209
Sheffield
S9 9BS
As part of our determination,
we will consult again on our draft decision.
Should we ultimately decide to issue the
permit, this would be only the first stage
in our regulation of the plant. If a facility
is built, we will monitor its environmental
performance, including emissions to air,
to ensure that permit conditions are complied
with.
+ More
River monitoring goes
green
The Environment Agency’s
West Area Hydrometry and Telemetry team
are ‘going green’ by installing solar and
wind power on river monitoring stations
across Shropshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire.
These stations collect
river data and help provide vital flood
warnings to people across the Midlands.
The new solar and wind
power installations replace the alkaline
batteries that previously powered the river
stations. The manufacture and transport
of alkaline batteries creates carbon which
contributes to climate change. They also
have a limited life and, at the end of their
working lives they need to be disposed of
at a specialist facility.
Using renewable energy
means fewer site visits to replace batteries,
less environmental impact and a huge saving
in costs.
The first river stations
have already been converted to green energy
and many more will follow. All new stations
are now automatically being considered for
renewable energy sources.
Hydrometry and Telemetry
Officer Rob Davies says “We are working
hard to make where we live and work a better
place, and to be more sustainable so that
we use less of the planet’s non-renewable
resources. This is a great example of what
can be done by an organisation to reduce
its impact on the environment and save money
at the same time
“It is the mileage that
we are saving that is brilliant, as well
as the reliability of the new stations.
It also gives us extra time to install new
river monitoring sites and get more important
river details such as flow, which means
better information for us during flood events
and a better flood warning service for local
residents.”
