The Environment Agency has announced completion of a £2.7million flood scheme that will better protect 250 homes and businesses in Ponteland, England.
Work on the Ponteland flood scheme started in August 2020 and included replacing the existing flood defences on the south bank of the River Pont with one continuous sheet piled flood wall.
Kirsty Harwood , Environment Agency Project Manager for the Ponteland flood scheme, said: “We know there is a long history of flooding in Ponteland and although we can never eradicate the risk entirely, now this project is complete we hope it provides reassurance for local residents that they are better protected now and into the future.”
Hexham MP Guy Opperman who has already visited the site recently to see first-hand the completed project commented: “I recently saw first-hand the vital work that has gone into protecting our communities in Ponteland. It is brilliant the work has now been completed – the extra investment has turned into action so quickly, ensuring that confidence is given to those concerned about flooding locally.”
During the works, the contractor – BAM Nuttall maintained a temporary flood defence throughout construction to uphold flood protection. Almost all of the people employed by BAM to work on the project were local.
A record £5.2 billion government investment to create around 2,000 new flood and coastal defences and better protect 336,000 properties across England by 2027 was announced last year . The Environment Agency has also set out its vision for a nation ready for, and resilient to, flooding in its National Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Strategy .