Somerset farmers urged to stop growing crop after floods

Drainage systems in Ilminster became overwhelmed by torrential rain in 2021

Farmers are being urged to stop growing maize in a bid to prevent flooding around a Somerset town.

Somerset County Council commissioned a report after Ilminster and nearby village Sea were severely affected by flooding in October 2021.

A draft report says the flooding was caused by a combination of very high rainfall and the relative low permeability of the town's soil.

Nearly 60 properties in the area were affected by the 2021 floods.

Farm vehicles tend to compact the soil of maize fields, which "could be exacerbating the surface water" after heavy rain, according to the report.

Recommendations in the report include persuading farmers to grow "more benign" crops and to ensure drainage gullies are more frequently cleared, the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) said.

The flooding was concentrated in two main areas of Ilminster

Some of the other recommendations include:

• Reviewing emergency plans to ensure different agencies are co-ordinated in their response, including the district council's homelessness team

• Auditing gully cleaning contractors to "ensure the job is being done correctly, and see if improvements can be made"

• Working with Western Power Distribution to prioritise getting vulnerable people's electricity reconnected after a flood event

• Carrying out new modelling on the River Isle and Shudrick Stream to better predict flooding patterns

Ilminster was severely affected by flooding on 20 October 2021

Councillor Dave Bulmer said "significant engineering works may be needed" in and around Ilminster to prevent a repeat of the flooding of 2021.

The draft report was debated by South Somerset District Council's area west committee when it met in Chard on Wednesday.

Councillor Sue Osborne - whose Windwhistle ward includes numerous villages south of Ilminster - questioned whether funding from a planned development of 150 homes could be used to provide flood protection to the neighbouring properties.

Plans were put forward in January 2019 for homes on the northern side of the B3168 Station Road and a range of employment units on the southern side.

However, a decision has been pushed back multiple times due to concerns about flooding from the River Isle.