Flood group 'worried' over Environment Agency plan

Parts of south Somerset were flooded after heavy rain in January 2025

A flood prevention group says it is "very worried" an Environment Agency (EA) plan to stop maintaining some small rivers and streams will cause flooding.

The Somerset Rivers Authority (SRA), which was set up after devastating floods more than a decade ago, is urging the EA to rethink its decision.

Mike Stanton, chair of the SRA, said the EA was pushing responsibility for maintenance onto landowners, adding: "We all got very worried, and we still are."

The EA said it was reducing vegetation cutting in some areas due to its "low flood risk benefit" as it had to prioritise resources due to a 40% government funding cut. A government spokesperson declined to comment.

The EA announced the changes in mid-August, prompting concern from farmers who said maintenance was key to preventing flooding.

The SRA, which works to reduce the risk and impact of flooding, is now calling for the decision to be reversed until a formal impact assessment is carried out.

The Environment Agency says it needs to focus resources after a funding cut

Mr Stanton said waterways will be blocked if trees are "allowed to build up", adding "one blockage can cause a flood".

"If you think about 30 miles [48km] of river or 30 miles of stream, if just one landowner on a piece 20 metres [65ft] long does not do the maintenance and the river gets blocked the fact that everyone else did it doesn't help," he explained.

"If you take the stream that runs through where I live in South Petherton, North Mill Brook, it's a trickle most of the time but then on 26 January it was suddenly a torrent and it flooded over 30 houses," he added.

A spokesperson for the EA said it had to prioritise what work it can deliver to minimise flooding within the funding it had available.

"We are consulting with our partners to ensure we gather any additional information that may help support the delivery of this work in future," they added.

Mr Stanton called on the government to "find a way" of better funding the EA.

"The EA has had its funding cut by 40%, so we're very sympathetic with the situation they're in," he added.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs declined to comment.