Decentralized Implementation of Flood Resilience Measures – A Blessing or a Curse? Lessons from the Thames Estuary 2100 Plan and the Royal Docks Regeneration

Figures & data

Figure 1. The Royal Docks – development areas and potential flood depths.

Table 1. Overview of interviewees.

Interviewee	Interviewee’s background	Date
Initiator of TE2100 Plan (EA)	Initiator of TE2100 Plan, key person during development of TE2100 Plan	2014-03-05
Main advisor (consultancy firm)	Main consultant of TE2100 Plan, key person during development of TE2100 Plan	2015-05-22
Principal Programme Manager (GLA)	Regularly consulted during development of TE2100 Plan	2014-03-10
Director of the Thames Estuary Asset Management Programme (EA)	Responsible for asset management of the TE2100 Plan	2015-05-19
TE2100 Senior Advisor for Floodplain Management (EA)	Responsible for floodplain management of the TE2100 Plan	2015-05-19
Development Manager in the Housing & Land Directorate (GLA)	GLA representative working on the Royal Docks project, regulator of social housing providers in London	2014-05-29
Strategy Manager for climate change adaptation and water (GLA)	Responsible for increasing London’s resilience to extreme weather and climate change	2014-05-29
Planning Advisor (EA)	Working at EA, advising the London Boroughs on planning implications of the TE2100 Plan	2015-05-19
Architect (Associate Director at architectural firm)	Lead architect on proposed residential redevelopment scheme of the Royal Docks	2014-05-27
Senior Project Manager (housing corporation)	Responsible for taking the proposed residential development scheme through the planning process	2014-05-23
Planning Officer (London Borough of Newham)	Responsible for spatial planning in London Borough of Newham	2014-05-29
Environmental Control Officer (London Borough of Newham)	Working on Newham’s responsibilities as a Local Lead Flood Authority (LLFA)	2015-05-27
Policy Officer (London Borough of Newham)	Working on Newham’s policies	2015-07-15

Table 2. TE2100 intentions and guidance for implementation as presented in the TE2100 plan and local council briefing for Newham.

TE2100 Plan intentions	Implications and guidance presented in Local Council Briefing	Assigned ‘implementation partners’
1) Maintain, enhance or replace existing flood defences, and integrate them into new developments wherever possible	Implement maintenance works (ongoing) and major improvements to flood risk management system (between 2050 and 2070)^a (funding guaranteed) Safeguard land for improvement works (a width of about 10m along the Thames) Incorporate the concept of ‘riverside strategies’ into local plans, strategies and guidance documents (guidance provided during EA workshop)	RFCCs Local authority planning teams Landowners Developers
2) Ensure that new developments in the tidal flood plain are safe	Agree on partnership arrangements and principles Apply NPPF where possible to reduce consequences of flooding Take TE2100 information to revise SFRAs and flood plans	GLA Local authorities’ spatial and emergency planners Developers Architects
3) Raise public awareness to facilitate emergency planning and response	Agree on partnership arrangements and a programme for floodplain management	For floodplain management programme: RFCCs LB Greenwich, LB Tower Hamlets and LB Newham Local Resilience Fora Transport for London Canary Wharf Group EDF Energy Managers/owners of vulnerable sites

^aRaise downriver defences in about 2070 by 1.1m if Thames Barrier is improved and no new barrier is built; raise upstream defences by up to 0.5m in 2065, and an additional 0.5m by 2100.

Figure 2. Existing houses in North Woolwich.

Table

	Document name	Published by	Date	Pages
Strategic documents	TE2100 Plan, Managing flood risk through London and the Thames Estuary	EA	Nov 2012	230
	TE2100 Plan, Technical Report	EA, 2009	Apr 2009	384
	Thames Gateway Delivery Plan	DCLG	2007	42
	London Plan	Mayor of London	Mar 2015	408
	Thames Strategy East	Thames Estuary Partnership	2008	181
Implementation and Guidance documents	TE2100 Local Council Briefing Documents Barking and Dagenham Bexley City of London City of Westminster Havering Hounslow Lambeth Lewisham Newham Richmond Southwark Tower Hamlets Wandsworth Hammersmith and Fulham Greenwich Kensington and Chelsea	EA	Jul 2015	each 9
	TEAM2100	EA	July 2015	3
	Flood and Coastal Resilience Partnership Funding	DEFRA	May 2011	11
	Planning Consultation Toolkit	EA	2015	16
Local documents	Newham 2027 – Newham’s Local Plan, the Core Strategy	Newham	Jan 2012	291
	PPS25 Sequential Test – Proposed Submission Core Strategy	Newham	2012	37
	Strategic Flood Risk Assessment Newham	Capita Symonds	2010	285
	Local Flood Risk Management Strategy (Draft, Version 5)	Newham	Sep 2015	68
	London Borough of Newham Efficiency Plan (2016–2020)	Newham	n/a	12
	Royal Docks, A Vision for the Royal Docks prepared by the Mayor of London and the Mayor of Newham	Mayor of London and Mayor of Newham	2011	52
	Royal Docks, Parameters for Development	Mayor of London and Mayor of Newham	2011	164
	Royal Docks, Spatial Principles	Mayor of London and Mayor of Newham	2011	100
	When we needed more detailed information on specific planning applications, we made use of Newham’s public access website: https://pa.newham.gov.uk/online-applications/search.do. This provided a greater level of detail on original plans, recommendations from the EA and potential alterations. We checked the archive for the following mixed use sites: Silvertown, Minoco Wharf, Great Eastern Quays, Gallions Reach Quarter, Royal Albert Basin, Royal Victoria