19th Wales Flooding Conference 2021: Management and Resilience | Webinar series

About the speakers

Eur Ing Keith Jones BSc, DMS, CEng, CEnv, FICE, FICHT, FCMI | Director | ICE Cymru

Keith Jones is a Chartered Civil Engineer, Chartered Environmentalist a Fellow of ICE and has been Director of ICE Wales Cymru since 1st May 2008.

Prior to this Keith was Operational Manager Highways at the Vale of Glamorgan Council, responsible for all highway maintenance operations including management of the DSO contracting unit as well as Environmental Manager for the Council. He has been in Local Government from 1967 to 2008 holding a range of posts involving Engineering, highways, infrastructure and drainage. Former Chairman of the County Surveyors Society Wales Engineering Committee and member of the UK Roads Board – advising Government on Highways issues. Keith is a member of the Cross Party Groups on STEMM and Construction and Industrial Liaison Boards at Cardiff University, Swansea University.

Julie James MS | Minister for Climate Change | Llywodraeth Cymru | Welsh Government

Julie James was born in Swansea but spent significant portions of her youth living around the world with her family. Julie spent her early career in London and then moved back to Swansea with her husband to raise their 3 children and to be closer to her family. Julie is a committed green campaigner, environmentalist and a keen swimmer and skier.

Until she was elected as Member of the Senedd for Swansea West, Julie was a leading environmental and constitutional lawyer. Prior to this, she was assistant chief executive at Swansea Council. She spent most of her legal career in local government, working as a policy lawyer with the London Borough of Camden before returning to Swansea to work for West Glamorgan County Council and then the City and County of Swansea.

Since being elected Julie sat on the Constitutional and Legislative Affairs Committee, Enterprise and Business Committee and Environment and Sustainability Committee. Julie published the ‘Influencing the Modernisation of EU Procurement Policy’ Report as Chair of the Enterprise and Business Committee’s Procurement Task and Finish Group. Julie also sat as Chair of the Environment and Sustainability Committee’s Common Fisheries Policy Task and Finished Group. Julie James was appointed Deputy Minister for Skills and Technology in September 2014. In May 2016 Julie was appointed as Minister for Skills and Science. Julie was appointed Leader of the House and Chief Whip on 3 November 2017. On 13 December 2018 Julie was appointed Minister for Housing and Local Government.

Ceri Davies | Director of Evidence, Policy and Permitting | Cyfoeth Naturiol Cymru | Natural Resources Wales Executive

Ceri Davies is usually based in Ty Cambria, Cardiff but works all over Wales. She has worked at Natural Resources Wales since April 2013. Her job title is Executive Director of Evidence, Policy and Permitting. She possesses a BSc Hons in Chemistry and Biochemistry. She is also a member of the Chartered Institute of Waste Management.
Her career to date spans over 27 years in both private and public sector organisations. She has significant experience in regulation, policy development and implementation of new regulatory regimes. All of her career has been focused on safeguarding natural resources whether that be from the impacts of pollution from industrial processes to the policy and evidence approaches needed to ensure the sustainable management of our precious environment.

Sam Wingfield | Principal Analyst | JBA Consulting Ltd

Sam has been in FCERM since 2004 working on projects ranging from strategic and catchment studies through to the detailed design schemes. Sam has more recently found himself at home managing a series of large multi-disciplinary coastal defence projects in Wales. Linked to his project management experience, Sam has been developing and adapting benefits realisation management and investment planning approaches into flood and coastal projects such as the TE2100 Plan and Hurst Spit to Lymington Coastal Strategy. Keen to stay involved in emerging R&D on government FCERM policy (eg. an evaluation of Partnership Funding), Sam is currently involved in a project helping to define and measure flood resilience.

Wayne Hope | Flood Risk Manager | Denbighshire County Council

Wayne entered the civil engineering profession in 1983 and has gained a wealth of experience, working for local authorities, consultants and contractors on a variety of significant infrastructure projects. He joined Denbighshire County Council in 2001 and as Flood Risk Manager, he has developed a programme of fluvial and coastal schemes for his council to undertake, making the most of the availability of government and European grant funding. Wayne is the Chair of the Liverpool Bay Coastal Group.

Melissa Mahavar-Snow | Cyfoeth Naturiol Cymru | Natural Resources Wales (NRW)

Melissa Mahavar-Snow is a Project Executive for Natural Resources Wales (NRW). Over the past 13 years she has successful delivered a number of projects and programmes which have benefited thousands of people, wildlife and the environment of Wales. Melissa is passionate about the Well-being of Future Generations Act.
Melissa is a Chartered Water & Environmental Manager and Chartered Environmentalist. Melissa is a CIWEM Welsh Branch committee member.

Sinéad Lynch | Senior Civil Engineer | Arup

Sinéad Lynch is a Chartered Civil Engineer and Project Manager at Arup managing the delivery of flood risk management and resilience schemes across the South West & Midlands. Most recently, Sinéad has been working with the Environment Agency to explore opportunities that not only provide flood resilience and mitigation to communities along the River Severn, but also unlock wider economic, environmental, and social benefits.

Paul Jones CEng FICE | Environment Agency

Paul Jones is a Chartered Civil Engineer and Fellow of the Institution of Civil Engineers working for the Environment Agency on the delivery of Flood Mitigation Schemes across the West Midlands. Paul has led and directed multi-disciplined and multi-cultural teams working on major strategic water and utilities infrastructure, industrial and land development projects in the UK, Kuwait and Qatar.

Fran Moore | Binnies JV

Fran is Binnies’ natural capital assessment specialist with 15 years’ experience in valuing the benefits of nature for informed investment planning. Her work seeks to ensure that we account for all of nature’s services that we benefit from, underpinning our economic resilience and well-being. The inclusion of all services, not just those that we can easily attach a monetary value to, provides a means to help restore the living landscapes around us.
She works in a range of sectors for both the public and private sector, including: water, flood risk, conservation, renewable energy and economic development. Her work embraces innovative digital technology including remote sensing and interactive websites as a means to aid nature recovery. Her work regularly helps secure additional funding for nature recovery, increasingly new, innovative funding models are linked to agro-ecological transition and catchment restoration. Fran is part of a socio-ecological resilience research cluster at Hull University’s Centre for Systems Research whilst studying for her PhD on regenerative farming practices. She is also founding Director of Chester Community Energy who own and operate renewable energy schemes in Cheshire.

Dr Reza Ahmadian | Prifysgol Caerdydd | Cardiff University

Reza is a Reader and the Director of International at School of Engineering, Cardiff University. He has more than 15 years’ experience in developing and refining hydro-environmental computational models. Reza is the past Chair and member of the leadership team of the International Association for Hydro-environment engineering and Research (IAHR) UK chapter and is a member of Editorial Panel of Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers - Water Management. Reza’s research is mainly motivated by reducing the risk to humans’ health and sustainable use of water. Three key strands of his research are as follows: flood modelling with particular focus on modelling flash floods, dynamically 1D-2D linked models, implementation of sustainable and nature-based solutions, including SuDS, modelling flood risk and hazard and evacuation and access route planning; Marine and hydrokinetic renewable energy including tidal lagoons and barrages; and water quality modelling particularly nutrients and hydro-epidemiological modelling.

Jeremy Jones | Technical Director, Asset Strategy & Planning Practice Head of Discipline | Atkins

Jeremy Jones has over 40 years’ experience in the water industry and is a well-known figure in the field of Storm Water Management (SWM). In the last 10 years, he has held a number of responsible positions and is currently advising several water companies, associated industry and the government on the approach needed for SWM in the future. He has Chaired the Water UK Surface Water Management Network and been Chair of the joint Water Companies and EA Group advising Defra on overcoming the difficulties in delivery of SuDS legislation in the UK. He sits on the Welsh Government SuDS Implementation Group and was a member of the Wales Flood Risk Management Committee for 10 years. He has many links to water companies and the Environment Agency as well as Scottish Water, SEPA and WICS. He advises on a range of high profile projects such as subject matter expert on drainage for HS2 and expert witness on drainage strategy for Sizewell C. He is the Project Director for Daylighting of the Dock Feeder canal. Jeremy has also chaired the CIWEM Professional Standards Committee.

Tom McLean | Llywodraeth Cymru | Welsh Government

Tom McLeanis a technical advisor in the Welsh Government Flood and Coastal Erosion Risk Management Branch. Tom delivered the Business Case Guidance used by Risk Management Authorities to justify FCERM investment in Wales, he also oversees the appraisal of all Local Authority FCERM schemes.

Dickon Wells | Llywodraeth Cymru | Welsh Government

Dickon Wells is technical advisor in flood and coastal erosion risk management for Welsh Government. Dickon is a chartered civil engineer and has worked in flood risk management for 10 years in the UK and Canada. Dickon has worked as both an engineer and project manager across a diverse range of flood and coastal projects including flood alleviation, river restoration, coastal erosion, tsunamis, and debris flows.