Plan for River Wey Schemes Introduced

Works are underway to develop the Wey flood alleviation schemes that will reduce flood risk to local communities.

The Environment Agency, together with its partners, is currently looking at schemes in Godalming, Guildford, Old Woking and Byfleet and Weybridge.

At the moment, options for reducing the risk of flooding along the River Wey include:

• bypass channels;
• channel improvements;
• flood walls and banks;
• temporary defenses;
• property level protection;
• flood storage areas;
• catchment management.

The costs for the schemes are estimated to be in the range of 5.9 million to 23 million, depending on the preferred options.

The first stage of the schemes will focus on Godalming and Guildford. These are currently in the appraisal stage and involve studies into the most viable options for reducing flood risk.

If the schemes get approval then the building work for the Godalming scheme could begin in April 2017 and take approximately 1 to 2 years to complete.