Natural Flood Management in urban river catchments
Lead Research Organisation:
Loughborough University
Department Name: Architecture, Building and Civil Eng
Abstract
Natural Flood Management (NFM) techniques aim to reduce the risk of flooding through the implementation of measure which protect, restore and emulate the natural functions of a river catchment. Typically, NFM schemes in the UK are focused on the rural headwaters of medium scale river catchments and delivered through partnership work between government, the charity sector and the agricultural sector.
It is probable that the focus of NFM techniques on rural catchments derives from a perceived availability of space. The confines of the urban environment mean that land values are proportionately much higher than rural areas. In some cases urban rivers have been culverted or straightened with development in close proximity. Conversely, the potential benefits of working in urban catchments are a much higher density of population at risk of flooding (increasing the potential benefit-cost ratio of successful interventions), comparatively lower runoff hydrograph volumes on small catchments and, crucially, the presence of public open space (parkland) which is often sited around watercourses that have been engineered in the past to convey flood flows rapidly downstream.
In urban areas, the focus of 'natural' approaches to flood risk management is on sustainable drainage (SuDS) which similarly aims to mimic natural processes by slowing down runoff from new development sites. However, the field of SuDS does not consider the effect of the watercourse network and its associated floodplains on the management of flood risk: it relates only to the runoff from individual pockets of land within the wider catchment.
The key questions to be addressed by the research are:
1) What are the challenges and barriers to implementation of NFM measures in smaller, urbanised catchments: why are practitioners not drawn towards urban areas given the proximity of high numbers of property at risk of flooding?
2) What is the potential for NFM techniques to reduce flood risk in more urbanised catchments and how can these techniques be optimised for this sub-set of river catchments? How do the challenges identified in rural catchments, such as flood synchronicity, apply to urban streams?
3) Can the research areas of NFM and SUDS be unified into a more holistic approach to river catchment management that removes the divide between urban and rural flood management.
It is probable that the focus of NFM techniques on rural catchments derives from a perceived availability of space. The confines of the urban environment mean that land values are proportionately much higher than rural areas. In some cases urban rivers have been culverted or straightened with development in close proximity. Conversely, the potential benefits of working in urban catchments are a much higher density of population at risk of flooding (increasing the potential benefit-cost ratio of successful interventions), comparatively lower runoff hydrograph volumes on small catchments and, crucially, the presence of public open space (parkland) which is often sited around watercourses that have been engineered in the past to convey flood flows rapidly downstream.
In urban areas, the focus of 'natural' approaches to flood risk management is on sustainable drainage (SuDS) which similarly aims to mimic natural processes by slowing down runoff from new development sites. However, the field of SuDS does not consider the effect of the watercourse network and its associated floodplains on the management of flood risk: it relates only to the runoff from individual pockets of land within the wider catchment.
The key questions to be addressed by the research are:
1) What are the challenges and barriers to implementation of NFM measures in smaller, urbanised catchments: why are practitioners not drawn towards urban areas given the proximity of high numbers of property at risk of flooding?
2) What is the potential for NFM techniques to reduce flood risk in more urbanised catchments and how can these techniques be optimised for this sub-set of river catchments? How do the challenges identified in rural catchments, such as flood synchronicity, apply to urban streams?
3) Can the research areas of NFM and SUDS be unified into a more holistic approach to river catchment management that removes the divide between urban and rural flood management.
Organisations
Studentship Projects
| Project Reference | Relationship | Related To | Start | End | Student Name |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NE/S007350/1 | 01/10/2019 | 30/09/2027 | |||
| 2467335 | Studentship | NE/S007350/1 | 01/10/2020 | 30/09/2027 | Jonathan Vann |