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Leeds prepares £45m flood defence scheme

2 Sep 13 Leeds city councillors will this week be asked to approve flood defence measures as the first part of a major project to protect the city.

The council’s executive board meets on Wednesday 4 September to hear the latest proposals to reduce the risk of the River Aire flooding.

The executive board will be asked to approve construction of a low-level landscaped embankment at Woodlesford. This would be advance works ahead of the main project that includes replacement of fixed weirs at Crown Point and Knostrop with moveable weirs that can be lowered in flood conditions to reduce river levels. The moveable weirs would be the first installed in the UK although they are tried and tested in other countries, the council said.

In addition to £10m committed by Leeds City Council to the £44.8m project, the remaining funding package consists of £23m from the Department for Environment, Food and Agriculture (Defra), £3.4m from the Department for Business Industry & Skills (BIS), and £8.4m from the EA’s flood defence grant in aid, which is expected to be formally confirmed in the coming weeks.

The additional elements include the removal of an island at Knostrop Cut, which separates the river from the canal and flood defences in the city centre.

Work on site at Woodlesford is scheduled to start in January 2014, with the main project works programmed to begin in April 2014 and be completed by the end of 2016.

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