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Agency issues staggering warning about 8 million UK homes: 'The frequency and severity ... are likely to become more and more challenging'

"More detailed … risk information … is essential for local authorities to be able to plan effectively."

"More detailed ... risk information ... is essential for local authorities to be able to plan effectively."

Photo Credit: iStock

A new report from the U.K.'s Environment Agency says 6.3 million British properties are currently at risk of flooding. By 2050, 8 million may be in danger due to increased rainfall and sea level rise. This amounts to one in four properties in the country. 

"The frequency and severity of the kind of flood events that we've been experiencing are likely to become more and more challenging," Julie Foley, director of flood risk strategy at the Environment Agency, told the BBC.

What's happening?

The Environment Agency's report is an update on assessments last done in 2018 and 2017. Improved data-gathering methods have shown a 43% higher risk than previously calculated. 

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Increased manmade emissions and the climate change they cause have been shown to lead to more erratic and severe rainfall patterns. This extends beyond isolated incidents. We have enough data to show a clear trend and causality. 

Why is flooding important?

Uncharacteristically harsh storms battered the U.K. in 2024 and show no signs of relenting. Similar increases in flooding are clear in tropical areas and American coastal states as well. While much of this flooding is due to storms, warming oceans are melting glaciers and contributing to sea level rise.

This trend is especially bad news for low-lying island nations that are likely to disappear into the world's oceans. Others living in coastal communities (which is about 45% of the world population) still face considerable costs of flooding. Those that can't afford mitigation efforts are likely to lose their homes and trigger inland migration

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What's being done about flooding?

When areas are assessed as high-risk, they get a chance to be prepared. Individual British homeowners are getting creative with their flood solutions, but the best mitigation efforts will need to come from the government. 

"More detailed flood and coastal risk information, which takes climate change into account, is essential for local authorities to be able to plan effectively, to protect their local communities and to start to build resilient infrastructure for the future," said Hannah Bartram of the Association of Directors for Environment, Planning and Transport in the Environment Agency report.

The U.K.'s Environment Agency has an online tool Britons can use to find out about the flood risk to their particular properties.

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