A flood prevention scheme worth £20.9 million was opened today in Forres.

Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment, Richard Lochhead formally marked the completion of the Forres (Burn of Mosset) Flood Prevention Scheme to help protect homes and businesses.

Mr Lochhead said: "Many Forres residents can breathe a collective sigh of relief following the opening of the Burn of Mosset Flood Prevention Scheme. As a result of this substantial and long awaited project, the local community can now sleep a little easier.

"The town has more than 900 homes and businesses considered at risk from flooding and extreme wet weather always brings anxiety to the local community, given past painful experiences."

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The Cabinet Secretary said Forres has a long history of flooding and, should this continue, the economic impact could be immense. There have been five major floods here in the past 50 years with the 1997 flood alone creating devastation and £3.7 million in damages.

He continued: "Without this scheme future floods were predicted to cost over 40 million pounds in damages to homes, livelihoods and potentially lives themselves.

"The effects of climate change are likely to double the chance of flooding by the end of this century and the Scottish Government is taking a leading role in addressing this challenge by introducing the most ambitious climate change legislation anywhere in the world. Flooding is an issue we cannot afford to ignore. We may not be able to prevent flooding in the future but we can manage it and offer protection to life and property."

The main component of the scheme is a dam to reduce the possible flow of water into Forres combined with channel improvements within the town and at Rafford.

The dam contract was successfully completed on budget and ahead of schedule. The Moray Flood Alleviation team included, Moray Council, Morrison, Royal Haskoning and EC Harris.

(GK/KMcA)