Last updated at 20:29, Thursday, 07 May 2009

A £40,000 SCHEME to investigate flooding on Gote Road in Cockermouth will be carried out in July.

About 25 residents were told of the plan by Environment Agency engineer Adrian Bacon at a meeting of the Gote Road Flood Action Group on Monday.

Mr Bacon, who was in charge of flood defence work carried out in Waterloo Street this year, said: “We want to fully understand the problems that Gote Road receives as we know it is a complex problem.“We want to work with local residents, use their local knowledge and involve them in the consultation to build up a viable flood plan.“We can then find a starting point to try and carry out the works.”

Mr Bacon said the agency would assess options. He said that smaller schemes could be more effective and cost beneficial.

He added: “If a big scheme was put into action it would have already been done, so we have to look at smaller things that will make a difference.”

Many residents said the main problem was overflowing drains where the river curves beneath Papcastle.

Mr Bacon said this would be the first thing that the Environment Agency would look at.

Group chairman Susan Cashmore welcomed the consultation and said that residents would pass on local knowledge to help the Environment Agency.She said she would contact United Utilities to sort out problems with a pump house off Gote Road, which she said did not work properly.

Contact with the Highways Agency would involve discussion about drains which she said had not been cleared since October after the last floods.

Miss Cashmore was due to meet with Workington MP Tony Cunningham today to discuss problems which residents had with insurance claims.

The group’s next meeting will take place at Cockermouth Cricket Club on June 2 at 7pm.

First published at 19:23, Thursday, 07 May 2009
Published by http://www.timesandstar.co.uk