Association of Drainage Authorities

infobox Organization
name = Association of Drainage Authorities

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image_border =
size = 270px
caption =
abbreviation = ADA
formation = 1927
type = Membership organisation
headquarters = Surbiton, Surrey
region_served = United Kingdom
membership = Internal Drainage Boards, Environment Agency Regional Flood Defence Committees, Northern Ireland Rivers Agency, Local Authorities, Consultants, Contractors and Suppliers
key_people = President: Lord De Ramsey
CEO: Jean Venables OBE
Chairman: Henry Cator OBE
affiliations = EUWMA
website = http://www.ada.org.uk

The Association of Drainage Authorities (ADA) is a membership body for organisations involved in water level management within the United Kingdom. [ [http://www.ada.org.uk/role.php?fs= The Role of ADA section of the Association's website] ]

Membership

The Association's members include Internal Drainage Boards (IDBs), the Environment Agency Regional Flood Defence Committees (RFDCs) and the Northern Ireland Rivers Agency. Associate Members include Local Authorities, Consultants, Contractors and Suppliers.

Activities

The main activities of ADA involve a wide range of work for and on behalf of its members including facilitating the exchange of ideas and promoting discussions to solving common problems and/or introduction of new approaches to members' work.

ADA responds to consultations from the Government, either on behalf of members or by facilitating individual member responses. It represents the interests of Drainage Authorities and other members nationally and locally, for example in relation to Bills in Parliament, other legislative measures, and local public inquiries. ADA acts collaboratively with other appropriate bodies or institutions to pursue the Association's objectives including linking to Europe through ADA's membership of EUWMA, (European Union of Water Management Associations) [ [http://www.euwma.org/ European Union of Water Management Associations] ] .

ADA obtains and disseminates information on matters of importance and interest to members, and provides assistance on technical and administrative problems. ADA organises exhibitions and demonstrations such as for the benefit of members, maintains a website and publishes the quarterly ADA Gazette.

Catchment 08 Exhibition

[http://www.catchment08.co.uk Catchment 08] on Wednesday 17th and Thursday 18th September 2008 is an exhibition set up by ADA for the flood management industry. It is to be held at the East of England Showground, Peterborough. [ [http://www.catchment08.co.uk Catchment 08 website] ]

ADA has been regularly organising exhibitions of supplies and machinery used by the flood risk management industry since the 1970s when the first ADA Demonstration was held on the bank of the Vernatt’s Drain near Spalding in Lincolnshire.

Consultations

IDB Review

A review of Internal Drainage Boards (IDBs) was announced in June 2005 by Defra. ADA has been involved throughout the review process representing its IDB members. It is one of four organisations which have a permanent position on the IDB Review Project Board which drew together a detailed implementation plan for IDBs. [ [http://www.defra.gov.uk/environ/fcd/policy/idbrev/default.htm IDB Review section of Defra's Website] ] As part of the process ADA produced a response to Defra's sub-catchment plans for IDBs entitled Moving Forwards with Defra's 'Rationale for Proposed Sub-catchment Internal Drainage Boards' [ [http://www.ada.org.uk/morenews.php?fs=&id=18 Moving Forwards with Defra's 'Rationale for Proposed Sub-catchment Internal Drainage Boards' on the ADA website] ]

Summer Floods 2007

The widespread flooding across the United Kingdom in June and July 2007 prompted a number of inquiries by several organisations into government policy on flood risk management both at a planning stage and during the event. ADA has assisted in a number of these including the Pitt Review [ [http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/thepittreview.aspx Pitt Report Website] ] chaired by Sir Michael Pitt, the Efra Flooding Report [ [http://www.parliament.uk/parliamentary_committees/environment__food_and_rural_affairs/efraflooding.cfm?lang=_e Efra Flooding Website] ] and Audit Commission report 'Staying Afloat' [ [http://www.audit-commission.gov.uk/reports/NATIONAL-REPORT.asp?CategoryID=&ProdID=FE7A55D1-B7D7-4746-B27D-A665ECB07DED Audit Commission's Staying Afloat Report] ] . ADA responded to these consultations through stakeholder meetings, formal oral evidence sessions and written responses after seeking the views of its members. ADA's response included a call for an enhanced and expanded role for Internal Drainage Boards, increased watercourse maintenance and the provision of more flood risk management engineers. [ [http://www.ada.org.uk/morenews.php?fs=&id=12 Summer Flooding 2007 Inquiries, ADA News] ]

Surface Water Drainage

As part of Defra's Water Strategy, Future Water published in 2008, key policy proposals were set out in a supplementary consultation entitled Improving Surface Water Drainage. ADA interacted with the consultation process through stakeholder workshop events and a written response. [ [http://www.defra.gov.uk/corporate/consult/water-drainage/ Improving Surface Water Drainage Consultation] ]

Guidance

In June 2007 ADA published in conjunction with Natural England national guidance for Internal Drainage Boards on mitigation measures for water voles. [ [http://www.ada.org.uk/documents/WaterVoleMitigationGuidance.pdf Water Vole Mitigation Guidance on the ADA website] ]

ADA hosts an annual Local Authorities Seminar aimed to update and guide local authorities with their responsibilities to water level management.

As part of its role in the IDB Review, ADA produced a document [http://www.ada.org.uk/documents/DEFRAsubcatchment.pdf 'Moving Forwards with Defra's Rationale for Proposed Sub-catchment Internal Drainage Boards'] in April 2008. This document considered [http://www.defra.gov.uk/environ/fcd/policy/idbrev/numbered%20boundaries.pdf Defra's proposed Sub-catchment Maps] , the [http://www.defra.gov.uk/environ/fcd/policy/idbrev/1dbreview6feb.pdf Minister of State for the Environment's Letter] and the [http://www.defra.gov.uk/environ/fcd/policy/idbrev/rationalebrief.pdf Defra Rationale for Proposed Sub-catchment Internal Drainage Boards] and highlighted the issues for discussions between IDBs. [ [http://www.ada.org.uk/morenews.php?fs=&id=18 ADA News on IDB Review 07/04/08] ]

Technical Assistance

ADA has assisted Internal Drainage Boards by developing a national flood risk management assets database system. Once complete the system will create a register of watercourses, pumping stations, sluices within IDB drainage districts. The system has had to take into account specific IDB requirements whilst ensuring a format that will enable ease of data transfer to future systems and user defined updates. The system is currently in the initial data gathering phase and is anticipated to go live during July 2008 [Andrew Gubbin (2008) ADA Data Integration System (ADIS), ADA Gazette Spring 2008 p18-19.] .

References

External links

* [http://www.ada.org.uk/ Association of Drainage Authorities]
* [http://www.euwma.org/ European Union of Water Management Associations]
* [http://www.catchment08.co.uk/Home Catchment 08 Exhibition Website]