THE severe weather and flooding of the banks of the River Clyde in Glasgow in recent weeks have made all too clear the risks we now face of flooding from tidal rivers.

With climate change and rising sea levels this is only going to become more problematic and less predictable in the coming years and decades.

The Greater Glasgow area, with the confluence of the River Clyde and the River Kelvin, as well as the Cart further downstream, can be particularly prone to simultaneous flooding from high tides, river flows and surface drainage.

Planners, developers and society at large need to seriously consider what is appropriate for how we develop the waterfront environment.

In particular, housing development on the river edge needs to be reconsidered, especially when we also consider the cost of quay wall maintenance, and who is expected to bear that burden.

There is also the risk of waste water overflowing into the river from the sewer systems. Waterfront properties could become increasingly more expensive to insure.

Other cities and regions, such as Boston Harbor in the USA (the “Resilient Boston Harbor” flood protection), are moving towards design and landscaping of their waterfronts with flooding in mind. So the waterfront is designed to allow for flooding rather than attempting to prevent it.

Housing and car parking needs to be shifted away from the river edge in favour of more open public spaces that are not permanently occupied and more easily evacuated if and when need be.

We have to ask if further expansion of housing development at Glasgow Harbour and elsewhere on the waterfront is appropriate or whether it is ill advised when faced with increasing flood risk. Instead, should we not be looking at sites further away from the river for residential setting?

Unlike, for example, London or New York, Glasgow is not a city with a shortage of land for development.

Iain McGillivray,

Executive Director,

Clyde Docks Preservation Initiative,

Glasgow.

Continuing relevance of the Boys’ Brigade

KEVIN McKenna’s obituary of that fine Christian activist Robert Macgregor Park Brown (The Herald, February 20) greatly uplifted me when I read that any good in him had been fostered by his membership of the 5th Hamilton company of the Life Boys and The Boys’ Brigade.

I am happy to state as a lifetime and ongoing member that the movement still caters for boys at a time when their support, supplied by thousands of dedicated lady and gentlemen officers, is needed as never before.

Our UK and Republic of Ireland strength is not as it was but our overseas numbers are flourishing and the quality of leadership gives hope for the future. The B.B. was founded in 1883 by William Alexander Smith in Glasgow, a fact that brings pride to many, many former members hailing from this city.

W. Raymond Shaw,

Glasgow.

Scrum of voices

WHY, oh why must the rugby commentators and pundits insist on talking over the referee and TMO when they are describing their decisions or addressing the players? Do they think they know better?

Ken Horne, Morlich, Montrave.

Hope springs eternal

DEFINITION of optimism: supporting the Italian rugby team.

D.Weir, Glasgow.