Water water everywhere?

The thing about adapting to climate change is that it’s very personal.

If you live in Bangladesh, for example, you may find the projections of sea level rises provoke you to move, if you can, to much higher ground.

Those of us in Oxfordshire, however, won’t necessarily want to move house to escape floods.  Let’s face it, it’s a beautiful county.

There are things we can do to gain some level of control, however.  The first step in this is to produce your Household Flood Plan.  This may or may not include buying products that give you an early warning or protect your property.  The main thing is that you have thought about it before it happens.  Make your choices now, rather than be left with no choices, and only consequences, after a flood has happened.  Would it make sense to move those sentimental photos into the loft?

Last night I took part in a flood planning introduction workshop and was surprised at how few people came along.  The events of last July and – for some – even January of this year seem to have already slipped the minds of some of us.  So I urge anyone who has suffered flooding, or who is concerned about that little stream running close to their house, to check out whether they live in a projected flood risk area.  Go to the environment agency website and enter your postcode to see if you are at risk.  If it turns out that you ARE – and this surprises you, i recommend you contact your house insurers and find out how they categorise your property.  Best to do this now, rather than wait for the flooding to get worse, as the experts predict it will.

Gain control.  Make a flood plan while the sun is shining.