Three times as many front gardens are now completely paved over compared to a decade ago, according to the Royal Horticultural Society. The RHS report is calling for a reversal of hard paving for the benefit of wildlife, the risk of flood and mitigating heat waves (1). London is particularly at risk from flash floods with 140,000 Londoners at high risk of surface water flooding (2)
London Assembly Member Jenny Jones said:
“We need to urgently reverse the paving over of front gardens. Such surfaces make it harder for London to cope with severe weather events of heavy rainfall and heatwaves, putting our homes and critical infrastructure at risk.
“To help reverse this, I should like councils to have the power to put an additional surcharge on council taxes on homes in high surface water flood risk areas with paved over front gardens that increase the risk of floods to themselves and other properties. Alongside other targeted measures to lift properties from high risk, this should help reduce insurance premiums.”
“The Mayor must be at the forefront of preparing London for the enormous threat of severe weather events, but unfortunately Boris Johnson is known more for misleading the public with inaccuracies and nonsense on the causes of climate change.”