If the rest of the world can plan for resilient infrastructure why does the UK find it so difficult, asks Frank Kelly?

With last month's long awaited approval for the building of two nuclear reactors at Hinkley Point in Somerset by EDF Energy, the issue of Britain’s long term energy dilemma has once again hit the headlines. These issues are of major concern and something the energy industry is tackling on a day to day basis. 

But as the CEO of one of the UK’s leading flood defence companies, alarm bells have started ringing in my ears for a whole other set of reasons. Think back just a few months. Last winter much of Somerset spent weeks under water. The coast across our entire country took a battering too. 

"The frustration for the me and others in the flood defence industry is that much of the disruption experienced could be reduced simply through  increased awareness and the consideration of flood mitigation in the project planning stages rather than as an expensive post build retrofit."

Having worked with EDF energy to propose flood mitigation solutions to protect its nuclear plants in France and having installed automatic flood defence barriers to protect the Dounreay nuclear plant during decommissioning, I’m confident the utilities sector is ‘blazing the trail’ in  ensuring flood mitigation is considered as a priority in their early project planning stages. We’re also working closely with other major water and electricity providers to ensure their vulnerable and at risk site locations are adequately protected.

The burning question in mind is however, how prepared are other key sectors across the UK economy? What level of priority is flood defence being afforded in road, rail & aviation infrastructure, manufacturing & facilities management design & planning? The average annual cost of flooding to the UK economy is around £1.4billion. The insurance bill following the winter floods alone topped the £3billion mark.

The international picture makes for equally alarming reading with figures of around $70billion being quoted to provide coastal flood defence alone. 

The frustration for the me and others in the flood defence industry is that much of the disruption experienced could be reduced simply through  increased awareness and the consideration of flood mitigation in the project planning stages rather than as an expensive post build retrofit.

Having recently won a $670K contract to provide flood defence to protect a new hospital in New York, it came as no surprise to learn that UKFB International, as the appointed flood expert, is being involved at the early design stage of the project.

The US contractor appreciates that involving us early in the project will save both time and ultimately money. More and more this is becoming the norm in the States. Isn’t it time Britain woke up to the importance of flood defence as an initial thought not an afterthought?