Communication and adaptation: coastal flood risk in Lincolnshire

Abstract

Lincolnshire's coastal floodplain is home to over 200 000 people in communities that range from small villages to the port town of Boston. It contains much of the country's best agricultural land and annually generates £400 million from tourism, but is very low-lying, defended by raised sea defences and maintained by pumped drainage systems. Major coastal flooding would impact severely on local communities and businesses, which presents a significant challenge when planning for future growth and regeneration. Lincolnshire's Coastal Change Pathfinder explored approaches and solutions to this challenge that would be strategically sustainable, and have the support of the diverse communities within the coastal environment. Fundamental in this was raising awareness of flood risk in ways that were accessible to a wide range of communities, but also left a legacy of better public and business understanding of coastal flood risk, along with greater capacity to respond to it in the longer term.