A new Teignbridge flood risk assessment scheme is 'essentially good news for everyone' and will provide better advice for planners, according to the man responsible for the district's environmental issues, Cllr Gordon Hook.
He said the new strategy was designed to improve the district's understanding of flooding to prevent future developments being at risk from inundation.
'It's an extension of the information we already have,' he told members of Teignbridge council's executive committee on Monday.
'We're looking at a potential for flooding some way further from the coast and main rivers.'
Cllr Mike Walters, whose Kingsteignton ward is ranked in the highest Category Three flood risk zone and destined to accommodate the 1,700 home urban village, said that incidents such as the flooding of New Orleans caused concern.
'Residents will need some definitive form of reassurance,' he said. His concern was echoed by Cllr Joan Lambert, who said the waters of the Teign adjacent to the racecourse were getting 'wider, wider and much deeper'.
Planning officer Tony Page said that flooding had been identified as 'one of the early showstoppers' early on in the northern option planning and tackled in conjunction with experts.
'The Environment Agency is happy that there is a technically deliverable solution,' he said.