A £22 million scheme to help protect homes and businesses in Hull and the East Riding from flooding has won two top awards.
The Anlaby and East Ella Flood Alleviation Scheme (AEEFAS) has won in the Infrastructure Category and Project of the Year at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors’ (RICS) Social Impact Awards 2020 Yorkshire and Humber.
The flood scheme involves a series of lagoons, watercourses and tunnels designed to capture and store thousands of tonnes of surface water running off the nearby land at times of heavy rainfall to prevent water flooding homes and businesses in the area.
The judges said the scheme was “an outstanding example of a project addressing the devastating human and social impacts of flooding”.
Councillor Mike Thompson, portfolio holder for neighbourhoods, communities and environment at Hull City Council, said: “We are delighted to have won these awards for the fantastic work our teams at Hull City Council and East Riding Council are doing to tackle flood risk.
“These innovative schemes are crucial to protecting our area from flooding, and by working collaboratively we can continue to minimise risk to some of our most vulnerable communities.”
Our Anlaby & East Ella Flood Alleviation Scheme has won two awards for Infrastructure & Project of the Year at the prestigious RICS Social Impact Awards 2020 Yorkshire & Humber!@East_Riding @Hullccnews @EnvAgencyYNE#ricsawards #RICSSocialImpactAwards pic.twitter.com/RBYXYgWUPb
— East Riding Council (@East_Riding) June 5, 2020
The scheme, delivered by East Riding Council in partnership with Hull City Council and the Environment Agency, will now go forward to the national final in September.
When it’s complete later this year, the project will help to reduce the risk of flooding to more than 4,000 homes and businesses.
Funding for the AEEFAS scheme came through the Flood Defence Grant in Aid administered by the Environment Agency and Local Growth Fund through the Humber Growth Deal by the Humber Local Enterprise Partnership.
Councillor Chris Matthews, portfolio holder for strategic management at East Riding Council, said: “These flood schemes are some of the largest ever built in this country and were a huge technical challenge for everyone involved, so to have them recognised by such professional industry bodies is a fantastic achievement.
“But it’s even better to know how well they performed over the winter months and how well they will work for years to come, helping to protect thousands of properties from the misery of flooding.”
