Floods campaigner welcomes pipeline

A LEADING campaigner has witnessed first-hand work that has been undertaken to tackle flood risks in North Yorkshire.

A new pipeline has been installed under the railway line in Norton and will play a crucial part in the area’s emergency flood plan, allowing Yorkshire Water to deploy emergency pumps to cope with future deluges.

When the pumps were previously deployed as part of the emergency plan for Malton and Norton, the pumping had to stop whenever a train went past as pipes needed to be placed across the railway track to get to the river.

Longstanding flood campaigner and a member of Ryedale District Council, Coun Di Keal, said: “This is very welcome news and one more piece in the jigsaw of flood protection that we need in Norton, Malton and Old Malton to alleviate flooding.

“The installation of this under-track pipeline is great news as it will help residents and businesses in Norton cope better when the community is faced with flooding as it should reduce the need for prolonged road closures.

“Ultimately we need increased permanent pumping capacity in Norton, but this development, along with the extra emergency pumps that the town councils hope to provide, should make a big difference to how we are able to manage flood events in the future.”

The pumps are deployed to reduce the flood risk of homes and businesses and have been installed as part of the emergency plan involving partnership with Yorkshire Water, North Yorkshire County Council, Ryedale Council and the Environment Agency. Yorkshire Water is also mapping a model of the area’s catchment to improve its understanding of water flows in sewers.