Strategic Flood Risk Assessment

Proposed Strategic Development Plan 2020 Strategic Flood Risk Assessment August 2018 2 3 Table of Contents 1. Introduction ............................................................................................. 6 2. Policy and Legislative Context for Regional Flood Risk Planning...... 7 3. Strategic Development Plans and Flood Risk Management ................ 9 4. Sources of Information ......................................................................... 11 Scottish Environmental Protection Agency Flood Maps .......................... 11 Current Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire Potentially Vulnerable Areas 13 5. Potential Sources of Flooding in Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire ................................................................................................ 14 Fluvial and Coastal .................................................................................. 14 Pluvial (Surface Water) and Rising Groundwater .................................... 14 Roads Drainage and Sewers ................................................................... 15 Infrastructure Failure ............................................................................... 15 Natural Flood Management ..................................................................... 15 6. Flood Protection .................................................................................... 16 Aberdeen City Flood Protection ............................................................... 16 Regional Sustainable Urban Drainage Schemes ..................................... 16 Aberdeenshire Flood Protection .............................................................. 17 Ongoing Flood Protection Studies across the City Region ...................... 17 Ongoing Surface Water Management Plans across the City Region ...... 17 Potential Flood Studies for 2022 – 2028 Cycle ........................................ 18 7. The Impacts of Climate Change on Flood Risk .................................. 19 Assessment of Site Options According to Flood Risk .............................. 20 8. Conclusion ............................................................................................. 21 Appendix 1 – North East Plan District Potentially Vulnerable Areas (SEPA 2015)........................................................................... 22 Appendix 2 - Local Flood Risk Management Plan 2016-2022 - Flood Management Actions ............................................................ 23 Appendix 3 – Historic Significant Flooding Events in Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire ....................................................................... 24 Events in Aberdeen City .......................................................................... 24 Events in Aberdeenshire ........................................................................ 25 Portsoy .................................................................................................... 25 Banff ........................................................................................................ 25 MacDuff ................................................................................................... 25 Fraserburgh ............................................................................................. 26 Turriff ....................................................................................................... 26 Peterhead ................................................................................................ 26 Methlick ................................................................................................... 27 Huntly ...................................................................................................... 27 4 Insch ........................................................................................................ 27 Ellon ........................................................................................................ 28 Inverurie and Kintore ............................................................................... 28 Westhill .................................................................................................... 29 Aboyne .................................................................................................... 29 Banchory and Torphins............................................................................ 29 Ballater .................................................................................................... 29 Stonehaven ............................................................................................. 30 Fettercairn ............................................................................................... 31 5 1. Introduction 1.1 This Strategic Flood Risk Assessment has been prepared by the Aberdeen City and Shire Strategic Development Planning Authority (SDPA) on behalf of Aberdeen City Council and Aberdeenshire Council. The Assessment covers the local authority areas of Aberdeen City and Aberdeenshire, except that part of Aberdeenshire which is within the Cairngorms National Park. The area covered by this Assessment is referred to throughout as the ‘City Region’. 1.2 The Aberdeen City and Shire SDPA prepares a Strategic Development Plan (SDP) which guides the location and quantity of future development and informs the production of the Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire Local Development Plans. 1.3 The City Region’s vulnerability to flooding has been extensively assessed at both a regional and local level over recent years. This document is a high-level Strategic Flood Risk Assessment undertaken by the SDPA’s Officer Team in conjunction with Aberdeen City Council and Aberdeenshire Council’s Flood Risk Management Teams. It has been undertaken to support the next Strategic Development Plan for the City Region, which is expected to be approved in 2020. 1.4 The Strategic Flood Risk Assessment is a strategic overview of flood risk across the City Region. It combines the collection, synthesis and presentation of existing and derivable information on flood risk. 1.5 The Strategic Flood Risk Assessment process is designed to inform the development planning process and to reduce flood risk by considering and avoiding areas at risk of significant flooding. 1.6 At the time of writing, both the Aberdeen City Council and Aberdeenshire Council Local Development Plan Teams are currently undertaking Strategic Flood Risk Assessments to accompany their respective Main Issues Reports. The two Council’s Main Issues Reports should be published for public consultation in early 2019. It is in this context that this Strategic Flood Risk Assessment has been developed. 6 2. Policy and Legislative Context for Regional Flood Risk Planning 2.1. Scottish Planning Policy 2014 (para 256) states that Development Plans should prevent development which would have a significant probability of being affected by flooding or would increase the probability of flooding elsewhere. 2.2. Scottish Planning Policy goes on to state that Strategic Development Plans should (para 261) address any significant cross boundary flooding issues. 2.3. Consideration is given to the probability of flooding from all sources and associated risks involved when preparing Development Plans. Strategic Flood Risk Assessment is used to inform choices about the location of development and policies for flood risk management. 2.4. The Flood Risk Management (Scotland) Act 2009 provides a strategic framework for considering appropriate mechanisms to manage flood risk. Flood Risk Management Strategies for the City Region have been developed to reduce the devastating and costly impact of flooding and coordinate the efforts of all organisations that tackle flooding. 2.5. Flood Risk Management Strategies set out the short to long term ambition for flood risk management in Scotland. The strategies state the objectives for tackling floods in high risk areas. Actions that will then deliver these objectives are described and prioritised in six-year planning cycles. In the Local Flood Risk Management Plans, the decisions are based on the best evidence available on the causes and consequences of flooding. 2.6. The North East Local Plan District Local Flood Risk Management Plan for the cycle 2016- 2022 (can be read here) was published by Aberdeenshire Council on behalf of a partnership comprising three local authorities: Aberdeenshire Council, Aberdeen City Council and The Moray Council together with the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) and the following Responsible Authorities: Scottish Water; Forestry Commission Scotland and the Cairngorms National Park Authority. It identified twenty-three areas as potentially vulnerable to flood risk across the Management Plan area. These areas have been designated as Potentially Vulnerable Areas (PVAs), and represent areas where significant flood risk exists now or is likely to occur in the future. 2.7. The Plan proposes actions to avoid and reduce the risk of flooding through preparing and protecting communities within the Potentially Vulnerable Areas and the Management Plan District. The Management Plan’s actions include local authority-led flood protection schemes, flood protection studies, surface water management plans and natural flood management studies. The Management Plan is the guiding document for SEPA, local authorities and Scottish Water to fulfil their statutory obligations under the Flood Risk Management (Scotland) Act 2009. Additionally, there are three 7 PVAs within Aberdeenshire

Load more