Managing Water Resources and Flood Risk in the South East

This fourth working paper from the Commission for Sustainable Development in the South East focuses on the impact that current and proposed housing developments in the South East will have on water resources, flood risk and flood management.

It sets out to address two key questions:

• Is there enough water to meet the rising demand for new housing and domestic consumption in the South East?

• What impact will new housing developments have on flood risk in the South East growth areas?

It concludes that there is potentially enough water in the South East to meet the rising demand for new housing and domestic consumption. But only with the timely provision of new water resources and high water efficiency savings in existing and new homes. It also concludes that a range of new measures are needed from local government, national government and the Environment Agency to combat flood risk in the South East.