The plan for defences in parallel to the property boundaries was approved with 20 votes for, 8 against and one abstention. The decision was based on the majority advice of a professional body asked to assess various options for the location of the levee.

A separate decision will have to be made about the construction of the levee once further details of the plan are prepared and the costs of compensating local landowners are known.

István Tarlós, the city’s mayor, said the chief objective was to ensure that the area around Csillaghegy is protected from flooding. Eight expert opinions had been sought but no solution existed that would satisfy everyone completely, he added.

Opposition representatives said during the debate that further assessments should be sought before a decision is made.

Opposition Socialist representative Csaba Horváth said the proposal submitted revealed that the plan to build a levee directly on the riverbank had failed.

Márta V. Naszályi of the opposition Párbeszéd said the professional advisory body commissioned by the mayor had only agreed on two things: that the levee should not be built directly on the riverbank and that preparatory studies carried out so far were an insufficient basis on which to make a decision. The experts said further work is needed before a final decision is made.

Erzsébet Gy. Németh of opposition DK said the proposal was not suitable for coming to a final decision and the main levee should be built further inland along Nánási Road and Királyok Road.

József Gál of green opposition LMP said they also supported the dam to be built there. Tarlós said in response that the opposition representatives were completely wrong if they thought the council wanted to build a levee along the riverbank.

The general assembly decided back in 2009 that such flood defences should be built and at that time the possibility of building it along the Nánási Road and Királyok Road route was completely neglected.

MTI Photo: Kovács Attila