Introduction: National Strategy for Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management (FCERM) in Wales

The National Strategy for Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management (FCERM) in Wales herein referred to in this Environmental Report as ‘the Strategy’ sets the framework for managing flood and coastal erosion risks across Wales. As the climate changes we can expect those risks to increase and more communities will be affected by flooding and coastal erosion.

The Strategy is required under the Flood and Water Management Act 2010 and will replace the first strategy that was published in 2011. Since the publication of the first strategy, new legislation has been introduced that fundamentally influences how flood risk management is undertaken in Wales:

• Well-Being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015

• Planning (Wales) Act 2015

• Environment (Wales) Act 2016

  The Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) aims to present the environmental effects of the Strategy and ensure that Sustainable Development (SD) and Sustainable Management of Natural Resource (SMNR) principles are embedded, maximising delivery against Welsh Governments Well-Being Objectives (Appendix 5) and the objective of SMNR. The SMNR objective is to use natural resources in a way and at a rate that… maintains and enhances the resilience of ecosystems and the benefits they provide. In doing so, this will meet the needs of present generations of people without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs and contribute to the achievement of the well-being goals.