Case Studies

• Banbury is located in the south-east of England, close to London, Birmingham, and Oxford.
• Banbury is a historic market town that has been influential to local and national trade since the medieval ages.
• Banbury was destroyed during major flooding in 1998.
• Further flooding has occurred in Banbury, resulting in government strategies and management of the local river, which has benefited the town’s recovery but has come at a cost for its environment.
• The local government has invested in several schemes to reduce the risk of flooding in Banbury.
• Some of these schemes have benefitted the economy and allowed the town to develop, but they have also come at a cost to the environment.
• House owners in Banbury are no longer worried about damage to their property.
• Uninsured houses are especially at risk during flooding, because homeowners lose everything and must pay for repairs themselves.
• New footpaths and parks have been created surrounding the flood water storage, providing improved quality of life for dog walkers and families.
• The new biodiversity plan will increase vegetation - trees, hedges, ponds - to reduce the risk of flooding, improving the environment.
• During the construction of the flood water storage, heavy machinery damaged the nearby vegetation.
• Soil was removed from areas surrounding Banbury to make embankments, which will disrupt habitats and wildlife.
• The construction work cost £18.5 million.
• Construction jobs were created in the process, as well as some jobs to maintain the biodiversity plan.
• It is estimated that the storage scheme has saved £100 million in avoiding damages.
• Lyme Regis is a small town in west Dorset, in south west England.
• Lyme Regis is located along the Jurassic Coastline, a World Heritage site and famous coast in England, known for its fossils and coastal landforms.
• The Jurassic Coastline is extremely popular with tourists, but also comes with added risks to the coastline.
• The geology of Lyme Regis is a mixture of limestone, which is resistant to erosion, and clay, which is vulnerable to erosion.
• The clay sits on top of a bed of limestone, so as the clay erodes the cliffs are vulnerable to landslides.
• Houses, roads and farmland are at risk of being damaged due to cliff landslides.
• There is a risk to life with some landslides.
• The local government has developed a plan of coastal management called the Lyme Regis Environmental Improvement Scheme.
• Members of the local community were all consulted whilst the local government finalised the Lyme Regis Environmental Improvement Scheme.
• The Lyme Regis Environmental Improvement Scheme consists of five parts: beach renewal, coastal defences, coastal access, education, and monitoring.
• Beaches in Lyme Regis have been renewed with material, which continues to attract tourism.
• Tourism is very important to the town’s economy, so protecting the coastline is important to protecting local jobs and businesses.
• Some coastal defences in Lyme Regis have deteriorated and needed fixing sooner than it was thought, meaning the Lyme Regis Environmental Improvement Scheme has costed extra money and taken longer than expected.
• The River Tees is located in the north-east of England, crossing Middlesbrough, Darlington, and the Pennine Hills.
• There are many landforms along the River Tees, formed through the processes of erosion and deposition.
• High Force is an impressive waterfall with a 21m fall into a plunge pool below.
• High Force is located in the upper course of the River Tees, near to the Forest-in-Teesdale.
• The top of High Force is formed from igneous rock called Winstone, which is more resistant than the underlying beds of limestone beneath.
• Dolerite, the underlying bed of limestone beneath High Force, is highly resistant to erosion and has survived hundreds of years of continual erosion.
• High Force is a visitor attraction, with many walking paths around the site.
• There is a local hotel and the waterfall is included in the region’s Outstanding Beauty nature reserve.
• Over hundreds of years, the sediments have created the shape of the river and low-lying flood plains that have led to the construction of Darlington.
• Some visitors come to Yarm for river fishing for trout, chubb and occasionally bream.
• Darlington meanders in the lower course of the river, the River Tees, losing energy and depositing sediments.
• Yarm is important to the River Tees because it tends to be the location of any flooding.