WAVERLEY Borough Council has again come under fire for its decision not to carry out drainage works in St Christopher's Lane, Shottermill, to prevent further flooding.

The problem was discussed at the meeting of the full council on Tuesday.

The problems relate to a culvert dating back to the 1860s, which takes river water underneath properties in the lane.

Large intakes of water following heavy rainfall can cause the Victorian brickwork to crumble, causing blockages. In July, 2001, Haslemere Wardrobe, one of five properties affected, was inundated by three feet of river water and raw sewage.

Residents have called on Waverley to pick up the tab for remedial works but as the drainage network concerned lies underneath private land, legal responsibility lies with the landowner.

Despite calls from some councillors that an exception should be made, the majority maintained that the council had no responsibility to carry out the work.

While no figure was put on the cost at the meeting, sources have indicated that when the subject was raised three years ago, £60,000 had been mentioned.

James Mackie said: "The problem is due to the fact that a stream, one of the headwaters of the River Wey, runs under several of the back gardens and then through an ancient culvert and under the railway embankment to join with the Upper Wey.

"The culvert was built shortly after the railway line was extended south from Haslemere in the middle of 19th century. Since then, the flow of water has increased greatly, partly due to the climatic change and partly due to the increased building of houses, patios etc, for which planning permission was given by this council.

"In 1986, work was done to improve the system from the railway embankment to the river, which was authorised and carried out by Waverley Borough Council, but it was not completed.

"Meanwhile, the structure of the ancient culvert is crumbling, which is liable to cause blockages. Normally the responsibility for flowing water lies with the owner of the land, but ownership has changed many times and the amount of water has increased.

"So unless the culvert is repaired and the adjacent drain improved, it is likely that the houses and the business premises will be flooded again, and insurance, if obtainable, would be expensive."

Mr Mackie requested that the decision be deferred to the executive council for further consideration.

Michael Allan, member for Haslemere, Critchmere and Shottermill, expressed his sympathy for local residents, but accepted the council's lack of legal liability, especially in the face of the its financial situation.

He said: "While I accept both the severe financial constraints under which this council is obliged to set its budget for the coming year, and the lack of legal liability on the part of the council to undertake the work to repair or replace the defective culvert under St Christopher's Road, which led to such awful flooding, I remain most concerned for the residents of St Christopher's Road and Meadow Vale who face the awful prospect of a possible recurrence of this terrible situation.

"May I seek assurances from the director of the environment and leisure department that prior to DEFRA assuming responsibility for the critical ordinary watercourse which flows through this culvert, believed to be in 2006, that: a) The department will continue to watch and monitor this situation most carefully; b) In the event of a potential flooding in St Christopher's Road/Meadow Vale/Wey Hill, WBC will continue to provide a rapid response with sandbags etc, to those households and premises in danger, and; c) Seek to impress upon DEFRA the urgency of replacing this crumbling culvert as a high priority on its future work programme, as this critical ordinary watercourse, as I suppose we now have to call it, is an essential part of the drainage system for waters coming off Wey Hill, and the hillsides behind, area of Haslemere."

When the issue was put to the vote, the majority of councillors agreed that Waverley should not undertake or fund the works.

Speaking after the meeting, Mr Mackie told The Herald of his disgust at the decision.

He said: "The Waverley line is that they are not going to do any work that they don't absolutely have to. In this case, they say that it is the legal responsibility of the landowner.

"This is strictly legal, but I think that Waverley has a moral obligation.

"I think that the problems could have something to do with various developments in the area, which Waverley has allowed.

"When we grant planning permission for various things, I wonder if we give enough thought to drainage and run-off issues.

"What was adequate drainage in the 1860s is not adequate in the 21st century. I'm full of sympathy for the residents, as flooding is a horrible experience.

"I asked that the decision be deferred to the executive council for further consideration, which I thought was a perfectly reasonable course of action in the circumstances.

"I thought that saying no straight away was entirely unreasonable.

"I'm terribly disappointed. The vote went entirely on party political lines, which is something that has got worse in recent months and will probably get worse in the future.

"It's very sad the the Shottermill and Critchmere councillors did nothing to stand up for their electors, and that it was left to other members to stick up for them."