Flood Risk Management (Scotland) Act 2009 implementation: report to the Scottish Parliament - 2020

3. Local Authority Progress

3.1 Flood Risk Management Planning

Scotland is divided up into 14 Local Plan Districts (LPD), with a lead local authority assigned to each. For each LPD, a flood risk management strategy and a local flood risk management plan, covering the first six-year flood risk management cycle, were published in 2015 and 2016 respectively. In 2020, prepatory work has commenced for the Cycle Two Strategies and Plans (2022-28).

Flood Risk Management Strategies, prepared by SEPA, set out a long-term vision for the overall reduction of flood risk and include a summary of objectives and measures for Potentially Vulnerable Areas.

Local Flood Risk Management Plans are developed by lead local authorities and take these objectives and set out what actions will be taken and how they will be funded.

3.2 Progress on Actions in Cycle One

Local authorities continue to progress the actions identified in the first cycle of flood risk management strategies and local flood risk management plans. These involve a number of actions including awareness raising, self-help, flood warning schemes and flood protection schemes.

During 2020, one of the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic was that the construction industry shut down for a period. This caused delay to progress on some schemes but in general, the majority of schemes continue to make good progress.

Of the 42 flood protection schemes identified in the FRM Strategies, 1 was completed in 2020 (Bouverie Burn - Port Glasgow), taking the total to 7 completed (and 1 no longer required). 22 of the 41 schemes have been confirmed by their local authority and are either complete, in construction or are due to start in 2021.

The FRM Strategies and Plans identified 113 towns and cities that require Surface Water Management Plans (SWMP's) and over 100 actions that incorporated a natural flood management component. Authorities have continued to progress these studies and actions throughout 2020.

Local authorities also continued to develop potential actions for inclusion within the 2022-28 Flood Risk Management Plans, including the submission of potential flood protection schemes for the 2022-28 cycle (Cycle Two) to SEPA's prioritisation process.