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09 Feb 14 - 10:52 AM (#3599766) Subject: Flooded Folk From: Lizzie Cornish 1 Regarding the terrible flooding on The Somerset Levels and other parts of the UK, a new FB page has just been started up, to help raise funds/provisions etc. for the many people so deeply affected. I just wondered if the Folk Community would like to join, or help raise some funds in any way...concerts/folk evening/etc Here's the page, literally just starting up: 'Flooded Folk' |
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09 Feb 14 - 06:10 PM (#3599869) Subject: RE: Flooded Folk From: Lizzie Cornish 1 THIS is what people (and animals) are having to endure, some of them for 5 weeks now.. 27 New Photos of the Flooded Somerset Levels |
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09 Feb 14 - 07:52 PM (#3599885) Subject: RE: Flooded Folk From: Bert I hate to have to say this Liz, but we have been flooded three times in the last year and speaking from personal experience, nobody gives a shit. Not friends, not family not authorities, nobody cares. |
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10 Feb 14 - 04:32 AM (#3599962) Subject: RE: Flooded Folk From: Lizzie Cornish 1 I'm so sorry to hear that, Bert. It's time everyone changed to Giving A Shit...far too many have become almost Sociopathic in their outlooks these days, about each other, about our planet... I guess Mother Nature is going to change that outlook soon... At least the people behind this page DO Give A Shit, Bert..and are trying their best to help, as best they can. Lizzie |
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10 Feb 14 - 05:32 AM (#3599982) Subject: RE: Flooded Folk From: Bert I certainly wish them all the best Lizzie. Here, they announced that there would be Federal disaster aid on its way for one of the floods. That was the last anyone heard of it. No news of how or where to apply, no news of what the requirements were, or how to get assistance. It is lining somebodies' pockets, but I haven't heard of any victims getting anything. |
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10 Feb 14 - 08:05 AM (#3600026) Subject: RE: Flooded Folk From: Van They chose to live in a swamp. Other people have to cope with individual problems, fires,deaths etc and have to cope with their problems. Let them get on with it. |
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10 Feb 14 - 08:17 AM (#3600028) Subject: RE: Flooded Folk From: GUEST,Fred McCormick The Somerset Levels isn't a swamp. The people who live there pay their taxes like everyone else and they're entitled to help when the government and/or the Environment Agency makes such a hash of not dredging the rivers. |
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10 Feb 14 - 08:24 AM (#3600032) Subject: RE: Flooded Folk From: GUEST,Shimrod But, surely, the environment is irrelevant, isn't it? I thought that we can do anything we like to it, without adverse consequences. Have we been misled for all of these years? Surely not! Still, look on the bright side, all of those people affected by flooding in Somerset, the Thames Valley etc. should be able to rely on "the Market" to sort it out! |
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10 Feb 14 - 08:28 AM (#3600033) Subject: RE: Flooded Folk From: Van Dredge a river that is below sea level! Where does the water go then? Tends to flow downhill. |
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10 Feb 14 - 09:03 AM (#3600044) Subject: RE: Flooded Folk From: Lizzie Cornish 1 From Carolyn Evans of Red Shoes "If you join the Flooded Folk fb page you can see where you can donate to for flood victims. They are desperate for help, many cut off and farmers have no food for their livestock. If any of my music chums would like to organise a benefit concert in aid of flood victims then let us know via that page. At the moment the funds are going to Somerset but if you hear of any charities set up across the country then let us know. We need some big boys to step in and do a gig so come on please ! Xxxxxxx" Van, I feel ashamed of your heartless comment above. I hope that you do too, on re-reading it. It reminds me why I rarely visit Mudcat these days. |
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10 Feb 14 - 09:09 AM (#3600047) Subject: RE: Flooded Folk From: G-Force They chose to live in a swamp. Other people have to cope with individual problems, fires,deaths etc and have to cope with their problems. Let them get on with it. Better not tell that to the Dutch, or the western half of Belgium. |
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10 Feb 14 - 09:42 AM (#3600057) Subject: RE: Flooded Folk From: Bearheart Lizzie it sucks that some folks are heartless, but there are probably a lot of us on Mudcat who are just the opposite. I have been following this issue other places and didn't respond when I first saw the thread, but something said to check it out. Now I'm glad I did. Don't have extra cash to throw your way but I am praying for those poor folks and spreading the word to anyone I can. Blessings on you for doing this. |
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10 Feb 14 - 10:56 AM (#3600074) Subject: RE: Flooded Folk From: GUEST,Fred McCormick Van. "Dredge a river that is below sea level! Where does the water go then? Tends to flow downhill." Where does the existing river water in the Somerset Levels go? Out to sea of course, like rivers all over the world. All dredging is intended to do is to enable the rivers to carry more of the water away. I live on a piece of flat coastal land that is below sea level, and no, it isn't a swamp. It is drained by a river and two tributaries. But guess what? There are sluice gates at the mouth of the river to prevent high tides from backfilling into it. It hasn't flooded since the engineers dedged and straightened out the entire system, and that must be at least fifty years ago. |
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10 Feb 14 - 12:30 PM (#3600100) Subject: RE: Flooded Folk From: GUEST,Bridgwater bud Somerset levels; not heard that many local Somerset accents amongst the victims being interviewed on TV news...??? The levels - a deep entrenched well off vociferous tory voting heartland, we have a tory Government, there's going to be a national election fairly soon... Surely reasonable to assume Cameron has motivation to make a positive public show of eagerness to swiftly chuck money at a quick structural remedy, to help alleviate future flooding disasters ??? Would be nice to hope any money raised by these pop up charities finds it's ways to the pockets of much less well off genuine locals: the farm labourers and service workers devasted by flood destruction. It's a tough enough struggle for them to still find any affordable family housing on the levels in the first place, in an area dominated by [most likely well insured] powerful farming interests and affluent well connected commuter new-comers... |
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10 Feb 14 - 12:39 PM (#3600104) Subject: RE: Flooded Folk From: Richard Bridge Dredging is not the answer: - http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2014/jan/30/dredging-rivers-floods-somerset-levels-david-cameron-farmers |
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10 Feb 14 - 02:16 PM (#3600135) Subject: RE: Flooded Folk From: GUEST,RolandPeteur Actually, Richard, your posting is inaccurate. I've posted a considerable amount on there, having researched a viable solution, and it's being put into effect. The first thing I discovered is a 2004 policy document from the Environment Agency which illegally develops a hypothesis that certain areas should be used as reservoirs to spare towns downstream. To maximize water retention, they then proposed a number of policies which were implemented from 2005, including obstructing the drainage systems. In this specific case, a number of hills around drain onto sea-level polderland. Because the tidal range there is enormous, the second largest in the world, sometimes it's above sea level. sometimes below. Consequently, the water is channeled towards pumping stations which lift it into a river which is above high tide, and that drains it out to sea, passing through Bridgewater, a town of 35000, en route. The town has narrow bridges and creates a bottleneck to the drainage. On the north side of the area, a second drain was built 200 years ago which does the same: it has the advantage of not passing through anything other than countryside. Over the past few days, I developed a plan which the Royal Marine Engineers are putting into effect, to divert the river into the Northern Drain, bypassing the town. On the other hand, Environmental Agency representatives have sought to sabotage any thinking by making suggestions like Richard's, in a way which can only be termed reactionary. The probable reason for the plan is that other projects used environmentally-sensitive land and so other sites had to be found under EU legislation. For the EA's plan to have been legal, they would have had to complete a full impact assessment, consult those affected, give due consideration to objections and if the plan were to go ahead, provide commensurate compensation to those affected. None of this has happened, because it would have been cripplingly expensive, and obstructed their initial plan. If this thread wants to bow before a Civil Service which can destroy your homes and livelihoods without a thank you, then I guess the folk world is not what it was. In the mean time, the Guardian seems to be challenging the Government in a way the Labour Party seems no longer able to do. Part of it is that the plan was generated under Labour, but plenty of warning was given the current Government who ignored it, and so have primary responsibility for not correcting the fault while they could. |