Yarm Flood Alleviation Scheme

Closes 31 Aug 2024

Opened 16 Nov 2022

Contact

EA-YarmFAS@environment-agency.gov.uk

Overview

Introduction:

Yarm has a long history of flooding, dating back as early as 1771, when Yarm High Street flooded to a depth of 6 metres.

In 1993, the original Yarm flood alleviation scheme was completed. This scheme involved the construction of flood walls and flood gates to protect Yarm from the River Tees. Unfortunately, in 1995, these new flood defences were overtopped, and Yarm suffered flooding from the River Tees (see photo below). Additional works which built on the previous scheme were then undertaken in 2002. These works involved raising the flood walls by 0.5m (to their current height) and the installation of numerous new flood gates.

In total, the Environment Agency maintains 1.3km of flood wall and 32 flood gates in Yarm, with the defences providing critical flood risk reduction to over 500 homes and businesses.

A project to replace the flood gates in Yarm started in 2017, with 30 flood gates being installed by April 2018. Unfortunately, the flood gates that were installed in 2017 are deteriorating and are challenging for our staff to operate. Whilst the existing flood gates can and will continue to be operated in the short term to protect Yarm, our assessments have concluded that new and improved flood gates are required, providing Yarm with a greater level of flood resilience.

Timescales:

We continue to work on the detailed design of the new flood gates and flood wall improvements. Construction is expected to start in Spring 2023. 

 

Why your views matter

We want to give as many opportunities as possible for the local community to give us their thoughts and opinions throughout.

We are running a series of community drop-in events in Yarm library, so keep an eye on this page for details.

You can find our newsletters on this web page, as well as the proposal for some further environmental enhancements. 

If you would like more information or have a specific question – just get in touch with us via EA-YarmFAS@environment-agency.gov.uk

What happens next

The Environment Agency is looking to replace the Yarm flood gates because:

  • The existing gates are deteriorating faster than expected. They continue to protect Yarm however the gates do need to be replaced.
  • We have a new flood gate specification – using this specification to design new gates means that we will have gates that are safer and easier to operate.
  • Wide single leaf swinging flood gates can be dangerous to operate in windy conditions or on uneven ground, putting our staff at risk of injury. Consequently, we have made some gates smaller and changed some to sliding gates to make them safer to operate.

Another benefit of the new gates is that we will be able to shut the gates more quickly. This means that we will be able to shut them later reducing the impact on residents. There will still be some instances where we need to close the gates early.

Over the last 18 months we have engaged with all residents and landowners in Yarm who have flood gates on their properties. We have agreed with all landowners whether their flood gate can be removed and blocked up or replaced. In some instances, we have agreed with the landowner to reduce the opening width of the flood gate.

Thank you for everyone’s cooperation as we’ve gone through this process.

For more detailed information, you can find our newsletters on this web page, dates and times for community drop-in events, or contact us at EA-YarmFAS@environment-agency.gov.uk 

    

Timescales:

We continue to work on the detailed design of the new flood gates and flood wall improvements. Construction is expected to start in Spring 2023. 

   

 

Events

  • Yarm FAS - community drop-in event

    From 27 Mar 2023 at 11:00 to 27 Mar 2023 at 14:00

    Everyone is welcome to visit Yarm Library (41 High Street, Yarm, TS15 9BH) on Monday 27 March, from 11:00am - 2pm. This is an informal drop-in session where we will be happy to answer any questions about the Scheme. We will be running more drop-in events, so please look out for the timetable on this webpage.

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Audiences

  • Anyone from any background

Interests

  • Flood management