{"id":37239,"date":"2017-12-13T09:22:21","date_gmt":"2017-12-13T09:22:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.pbctoday.co.uk\/news\/?p=37239"},"modified":"2022-01-27T14:58:55","modified_gmt":"2022-01-27T14:58:55","slug":"flood-protection-international-examples-of-building-resilience","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.pbctoday.co.uk\/news\/building-control-news\/flood-protection-international-examples-of-building-resilience\/37239\/","title":{"rendered":"Extreme storms: International examples of building resilience"},"content":{"rendered":"

After a year of wild weather around the world and with Britain facing the threat of more extreme storms, Anthony Guay of Ramboll UK looks at what we can learn from international approaches to flood protection<\/h2>\n

2017 has been a year of extreme storms, from Texas and Florida to the Caribbean; these disasters offer clear reminder of the impacts of climate change. In 2016, Houston was deluged by a 45cm rainfall in one day, while this August, Hurricane Harvey poured over 120cm of rain in five days. By comparison, the UK average for annual rainfall is 90cm. At least 77 lives were lost as a result of Hurricane Harvey and estimates at the financial cost place it as high as $100bn (\u00a377bn). Much of the affected area in Houston was considered at risk of flooding but was developed upon due to the ever-increasing pressures of urban expansion.<\/p>\n

The UK is also witnessing more extreme weather. The temperate summer of 2017 saw flooding in Cornwall, as well as flood warnings issued in London and Yorkshire in early August.<\/p>\n

Intense rainfall overwhelms our cities\u2019 drainage and the clean-up is extremely costly. Extreme flooding will become more common this century, according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change<\/a>. We\u2019re faced with the challenge of improving our national infrastructure\u2019s resilience. However, new responses to such events are being developed around the world, offering pointers for the UK.<\/p>\n

Looking for lessons abroad<\/h3>\n

In Singapore, fluctuating water levels made planners reconsider one of the city\u2019s main drainage canals, transforming it into a natural winding river embedded in parkland. Bishan Park, its new name, can handle the intense rainfall that Singapore receives while remaining traversable and pleasant for citizens.<\/p>\n

Stateside, Portland\u2019s archaic sewerage systems led the city to implement blue-green infrastructure to help mitigate flooding issues. Schemes such as \u2018eco-roofs\u2019 will improve water absorption. These vegetated roofing systems also double as wildlife habitats. Similarly, green streets pair standard drainage with greenery. More widely, some 40,000 new trees will aid water retention across the city, as well as helping to improve air quality.<\/p>\n

Possibly the most salient lesson comes from Denmark. In 2011, Copenhagen received 150mm of rainfall in just two hours; some neighbourhoods were left under a metre of water. The Danish call these events \u201ccloudbursts\u201d, a term suited to such extreme storms. The rain caused insurance claims totalling more than \u20ac800m and overall socio-economic losses are thought to have doubled this amount. The city responded with a \u201ccloudburst mitigation plan\u201d. With input from Ramboll, among others, they determined the city\u2019s most at-risk areas, proposing a toolkit of solutions, including:<\/p>\n