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Integrated Approaches to Manage Floods in Urban Environments

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A special issue of Water (ISSN 2073-4441). This special issue belongs to the section "Urban Water Management".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (28 February 2022) | Viewed by 32401

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Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Chris Zevenbergen

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Guest Editor

1. Water Science & Engineering Department, UNESCO-IHE, The Netherlands;
2. Faculty of Civil Engineering and Geosciences, Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands
Interests: flood risk management; urban planning; water-sensitive design
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Prof. Dr. Walid Abdelazim Ibrahim

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Guest Editor

Sanitary Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering, Alexandria University
Interests: urban drainage systems; flood risk management; water-sensitive design

Dr. Mohanasundar Radhakrishnan

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Guest Editor

Water Science & Engineering Department, UNESCO-IHE, The Netherlands
Interests: climate adaptation; flexible planning processes; water-sensitive design

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Many cities are currently revisiting their urban flood risk management strategy. There is a shift in focus from reacting to and preparing for singular extreme events to (also) anticipating trends in these types of events. This long-term focus is inherently coupled with large uncertainties as we are uncertain about how physical (climate change) and economic conditions will change, what research and innovation will bring, how societal preferences will develop, etc. Moreover, long lead times of flood protection infrastructure and transformative change of urban infrastructure are prompting (city) governments to consider the long-term horizon.

At the same time, the high ends of climate scenarios are becoming increasingly higher. This notion of taking a long-term perspective is prompting cities to consider the impact of climate change on their strategies and operations. City governments are increasingly aware that these implications are not only relevant the long term, but also for decisions made today. At the same time, our ability to forecast and be prepared for the next storm is also increasing, resulting in longer lead times (warning times) and, thus, in more options to better prepare cities. However, prevention and preparedness are still conceived and addressed in urban flood risk management approaches as separate strategies. As a consequence, opportunities to increase flexibility and resilience through better alignment have not been fully exploited.

In this Special Issue, we will address these challenges of taking a long-term perspective, assuming that climatic conditions will drastically change in the future. We would also like to receive contributions on the opportunities arising from an alignment or integration of preparedness and prevention. What is needed for its implementation in cities?” In summary, with this Special Issue, we hope to share international experiences and explore challenges and opportunities of an integrated, anticipatory urban flood risk management strategy.

Prof. Dr. Chris Zevenbergen
Prof. Dr. Walid Abdelazim Ibrahim
Dr. Mohanasundar Radhakrishnan
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Water is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

Urban flood risk management
Anticipation
Adaptation planning
Technologies
Early warning

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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24 pages, 6076 KiB

Open AccessArticle

From a Hard to Soft Approach for Flood Management in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta: Integrating Ecological Engineering for Urban Sustainability in My Tho City

by Nguyen Van Long, Tu Dam Ngoc Le, Ho Nguyen, Duong Van Khanh, Ngo Thi Minh The, Duy Thinh Do and Yuning Cheng

Water 2022, 14(7), 1079; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/w14071079 - 29 Mar 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2964

Abstract

Flooding is one of the leading challenges faced by delta cities in the world. Flood risk management using flood control infrastructure (FCI) is a popular solution to prevent flood damage; however, this is receiving enormous criticism due to its negative impacts on urban ecosystems. Recently, there have been new approaches to flood risk management that gradually shifted the focus away from FCI, such as ecological infrastructure (EI) based approaches. However, the conventional thinking that cities cannot be safe without FCI seems an immutable one, especially in developing countries. This study firstly assessed human–river interaction in direct relation to FCI and outlined the limitations of FCI. Then, an urban ecology research model was used to conduct a case study in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta (VMD), in which the interaction between factors, including riverine urbanization, FCI formation dynamics, the changing hydrological regime, flood risk, and riverine ecosystem degradation were evaluated. Due to the dynamism and complexity of the interactions between humans and rivers at the VMD, this study attempts to demonstrate that building the ability to adapt to flood risks based on EI will have a crucial role in enhancing the sustainability of delta cities. Through a case study in My Tho City (MTC) a flood resilience management scenario for a riverine urban area along the Mekong River was developed to discuss the role of EI in flood risk reduction and the restoration of riverine native ecosystems. The findings from this study suggests that EI should be considered as an effective and indispensable design tool for the conservation of riparian ecological corridors and public open spaces—which is a major challenge for urban areas in the context of increasing climate change impacts in the VMD. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Integrated Approaches to Manage Floods in Urban Environments)

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16 pages, 5098 KiB

Open AccessFeature PaperArticle

Instant Flood Risk Modelling (Inform) Tool for Co-Design of Flood Risk Management Strategies with Stakeholders in Can Tho City, Vietnam

by Hieu Ngo, Mohanasundar Radhakrishnan, Roshanka Ranasinghe, Assela Pathirana and Chris Zevenbergen

Water 2021, 13(21), 3131; https://doi.org/10.3390/w13213131 - 06 Nov 2021

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3453

Abstract

Flood risk reduction strategies play an important role in flood risk management (FRM) and these strategies are being co-designed with the engagement of the stakeholder through multiple consultations and co-designing sessions. Effective participation of stakeholders in interactive work sessions requires fast and accurate modeling systems with a user-friendly interface, which can simulate the impact due to various flood reduction measures selected by the stakeholders and also generate outputs that can be understood by all stakeholders, especially those who are not FRM specialists. Presenting an easy-to-understand tool with easy inputs and outputs for a variety of stakeholders and at the same time providing reliable and accurate results for a range of scenarios and interventions is a challenge. Seven requirements that are essential for a user-friendly flood risk tool were used to develop an instant flood risk modeling tool. This paper presents a web-based hydraulic tool, i.e., instant flood risk model (Inform), to support FRM in the urban center of Can Tho city (Ninh Kieu district), Mekong Delta, Vietnam. Inform was developed based on (i) a simplified 1D model for the entire Mekong Delta; and (ii) flood hazard and damage maps, and estimated flood damage for Ninh Kieu district in Can Tho city obtained directly from the 1D/2D coupled model for Ninh Kieu district. Inform rapidly generates flood levels, flood hazard and damage maps, estimated damages. Pilot testing with experts confirmed that Inform qualifies as a reliable co-design tool for developing FRM strategies as it features an inbuilt input library, comprises flexible options, easy to use, produces quick results and has a user-friendly interface. With the help of an interactive web-based tool such as Inform presented here, it is possible to co-design FRM strategies for Can Tho or any other city that is subject to flood risk. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Integrated Approaches to Manage Floods in Urban Environments)

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25 pages, 945 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Planning the Urban Waterfront Transformation, from Infrastructures to Public Space Design in a Sea-Level Rise Scenario: The European Union Prize for Contemporary Architecture Case

by Francesca Dal Cin, Fransje Hooimeijer and Maria Matos Silva

Water 2021, 13(2), 218; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/w13020218 - 18 Jan 2021

Cited by 13 | Viewed by 6469

Abstract

Future sea-level rises on the urban waterfront of coastal and riverbanks cities will not be uniform. The impact of floods is exacerbated by population density in nearshore urban areas, and combined with land conversion and urbanization, the vulnerability of coastal towns and public spaces in particular is significantly increased. The empirical analysis of a selected number of waterfront projects, namely the winners of the Mies Van Der Rohe Prize, highlighted the different morphological characteristics of public spaces, in relation to the approximation to the water body: near the shoreline, in and on water. The critical reading of selected architectures related to water is open to multiple insights, allowing to shift the design attention from the building to the public space on the waterfronts. The survey makes it possible to delineate contemporary features and lay the framework for urban development in coastal or riverside areas. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Integrated Approaches to Manage Floods in Urban Environments)

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25 pages, 13469 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Watershed Prioritization of Kaeng Lawa Sub-Watershed, Khon Kaen Province Using the Morphometric and Land-Use Analysis: A Case Study of Heavy Flooding Caused by Tropical Storm Podul

by Katawut Waiyasusri and Srilert Chotpantarat

Water 2020, 12(6), 1570; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/w12061570 - 30 May 2020

Cited by 30 | Viewed by 4788

Abstract

During 29–31 September 2019, tropical storm Podul moved into the Kaeng Lawa sub-watershed (KLs), the upstream area of the Chi watershed, causing the worst flooding in 40 years. This study was carried out to analyze the watershed characteristic (WC) variables and prioritize the risks of land-use patterns in KLs, Khon Kaen Province, using a watershed delineation approach. As a result of this study, of the 11 sub-watersheds in the Kaeng Lawa watershed, only KL03 and KL04 were deemed medium priority within their drainage and storage capacity systems. KL01, in the upstream sub-watershed, displayed very low priority. The pattern of land-use that appeared most in KL01 sub-watershed was deforestation, where the upper forest area appeared to show a 63% decrease from 2002 to 2017. The decreased forest area was replaced with agricultural area, for crops such as sugarcane and para-rubber, and fruit farms. Moreover, increases in urban area expansion were found in the downstream area in the north of KLs. The findings of this study reveal that severe flooding in this area was caused not only by tropical storm Podul, but also by the low prioritization of watershed characteristics and patterns of land-use that resulted in decreasing forested area in this watershed area. Consequently, these factors have influenced watershed storage and caused an accumulation of water volume, which regularly results in floods. Thus, flood mitigation should be implemented urgently, in the very low priority areas of the study area first. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Integrated Approaches to Manage Floods in Urban Environments)

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Review

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24 pages, 1255 KiB

Open AccessEditor’s ChoiceReview

Addressing Challenges of Urban Water Management in Chinese Sponge Cities via Nature-Based Solutions

by Yunfei Qi, Faith Ka Shun Chan, Colin Thorne, Emily O’Donnell, Carlotta Quagliolo, Elena Comino, Alessandro Pezzoli, Lei Li, James Griffiths, Yanfang Sang and Meili Feng

Water 2020, 12(10), 2788; https://0-doi-org.brum.beds.ac.uk/10.3390/w12102788 - 08 Oct 2020

Cited by 69 | Viewed by 13327 | Correction

Abstract

Urban flooding has become a serious issue in most Chinese cities due to rapid urbanization and extreme weather, as evidenced by severe events in Beijing (2012), Ningbo (2013), Guangzhou (2015), Wuhan (2016), Shenzhen (2019), and Chongqing (2020). The Chinese “Sponge City Program” (SCP), initiated in 2013 and adopted by 30 pilot cities, is developing solutions to manage urban flood risk, purify stormwater, and provide water storage opportunities for future usage. Emerging challenges to the continued implementation of Sponge Cities include (1) uncertainty regarding future hydrological conditions related to climate change projections, which complicates urban planning and designing infrastructure that will be fit for purpose over its intended operating life, and (2) the competing priorities of stakeholders and their reluctance to make trade-offs, which obstruct future investment in the SCP. Nature-Based Solutions (NBS) is an umbrella concept that emerged from Europe, which encourages the holistic idea of considering wider options that combine “Blue–Green” practices with traditional engineering to deliver “integrated systems of Blue–Green–Grey infrastructure”. NBS includes interventions making use of natural processes and ecosystem services for functional purposes, and this could help to improve current pilot SCP practices. This manuscript reviews the development of the SCP, focusing on its construction and design aspects, and discusses how approaches using NBS could be included in the SCP to tackle not only urban water challenges but also a wide range of social and environmental challenges, including human health, pollution (via nutrients, metals, sediments, plastics, etc.), flood risk, and biodiversity. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Integrated Approaches to Manage Floods in Urban Environments)

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