SEPA and Local Authorities Joint Public Consultation on Flood Risk Management Strategies and Plans

Overview

The Flood Risk Management (Scotland) Act 2009 (FRM Act) introduced a coordinated and partnership approach to how we tackle flood risk in Scotland sustainably.

Flood Risk Management Plans coordinate a range of different efforts to tackle flooding in Scotland. They set the national direction of future flood risk management, helping to target investment and coordinate actions for all responsible authorities.

In 2015, SEPA published a Flood Risk Management Strategies for each of the 14 Local Plan Districts which set out actions in the areas at greatest flood risk and where the benefits of intervention will have the greatest impact. Taken together the 14 Flood Risk Management Strategies have provided a national plan for Scotland.

In 2016, the lead local authority for each Local Plan District produced a Local Flood Risk Management Plans which turned the Flood Risk Management Strategy into a Local Delivery Plans. These provided a summary of local activity to manage flood risk.

SEPA's Flood Risk Management Strategies and the Local Flood Risk Management plans are now in the process of being revised using updated information and understanding of flooding from the National Flood Risk Assessment and from SEPAs observed flood events database since 2016. This is a key requirement of the FRM Act which states that SEPA must review and update the Flood Risk Management Strategies every 6 years.

Phase 1 of the consultation process began in December 2020 when draft information for the 14 Flood Risk Management Strategies was published.

This included background information for Local Plan Districts and Potentially Vulnerable Areas and identified localised Target Areas.

Why your views matter

Phase 2 of the consultation is now open for response on the Target Areas identified.