Analysis of Flood Risk Due to Sea Level Rise in the Menor Sea (Murcia, Spain)

An Overview of Flood Risk Analysis Methods

Scientific papers present a wide range of methods of flood analysis and forecasting. Floods are a phenomenon with significant socio-economic implications, for which many researchers try to identify the most appropriate methodologies to analyze their temporal and spatial development. This research aims to create an overview of flood analysis and forecasting methods. The study is based on the need to select and group papers into well-defined methodological categories. The article provides an overview of recent developments in the analysis of flood methodologies and shows current research directions based on this overview. The study was performed taking into account the information included in the Web of Science Core Collection, which brought together 1326 articles. The research concludes with a discussion on the relevance, ease of application, and usefulness of the methodologies.

Protecting Coastlines from Flooding in a Changing Climate: A Preliminary Experimental Study to Investigate a Sustainable Approach

Rising sea levels are causing more frequent flooding events in coastal areas and generate many issues for coastal communities such as loss of property or damages to infrastructures. To address this issue, this paper reviews measures currently in place and identifies possible control measures that can be implemented to aid preservation of coastlines in the future. Breakwaters present a unique opportunity to proactively address the impact of coastal flooding. However, there is currently a lack of research into combined hard and soft engineering techniques. To address the global need for developing sustainable solutions, three specific breakwater configurations were designed and experimentally compared in the hydraulic laboratory at Coventry University to assess their performance in reducing overtopping and the impact of waves, quantifying the effectiveness of each. The investigation confirmed that stepped configurations work effectively in high amplitudes waves, especially with the presence of a slope angle to aid wave reflection. These results provide a very valuable preliminary investigation into novel sustainable solutions incorporating both artificial and natural based strategies that could be considered by local and national authorities for the planning of future mitigation strategies to defend coastal areas from flooding and erosion.

Financing and implementation of adaptation measures to climate change along the Spanish coast

Understanding how we are adapting to climate change in coastal areas is an essential issue in the long-term coastal planning. While most of existing studies focus on mapping the current state of adaptation plans, there is a significant lack of studies on the current implementation of adaptation strategies. This study addresses this challenge by assessing how coastal adaptation is being financed and implemented in Spain. In the absence of a detailed roadmap for implementing the Spanish Strategy for Coastal Adaptation to Climate Change, we have analysed how adaptation has been and is currently being funded; which the rationale for investments along the territory is; how adaptation investments compare to regular coastal protection costs; and assessed when implemented measures are really adaptation ones. Our results show that the financing source clearly conditions the type of measures implemented, with those funded under the Environment Promotion Plan for Climate Change Adaptation (PIMA Adapta initiative) being dominated by classical coastal engineering actions, whereas ecosystem-related actions are mostly funded under the LIFE programme. In territorial terms, the Mediterranean coastal regions present the most important problems under current conditions and attract most of the funding. Most of the funded actions have been designed to solve current coastal problems, and although they indirectly contribute to adaptation by improving the coastal base status, they are not specifically designed for climate change. This misuse of the concept of adaptation measure will tend to the society to be overconfident about adopted actions whereas we are not progressing to real adaptation. To overcome this risk, it is necessary to have a clear roadmap for implementing adaptation measures together a proper financing structure.

Long-Term GIS Analysis of Seaside Impacts Associated to Infrastructures and Urbanization and Spatial Correlation with Coastal Vulnerability in a Mediterranean Area

The relationship between the impacts of coastal perimeter transformations derived from human activity and coastal vulnerability is not easy to assess. The impacts associated with coastal dynamics are phenomena that usually develop very extensively over a considerable time. These are transformations that cause significant environmental damage in vulnerable coastal areas, but whose results are very often not really visible until 10, 20, or even 40 years have elapsed. In addition, the analysis and quantification of the current context in complex territories is particularly difficult, since the spatial feedback of various issues and its consequences can generate an uncertain scenario with many interrelated variables. In this field, the use of GIS tools can be of great help to objectively analyze the relationship between coastal anthropization and its impact on its vulnerability in order to correct wrong inertias in vulnerable coastal areas. To this end, a long-term GIS analysis has been carried out of the impacts from urbanization and seaside infrastructures suffered by a complex Mediterranean coastal area in Spain. This territory, with singular elements such as dune ridges, beaches located in protected areas, and a coastal lagoon, will be evaluated using GIS spatio-temporal indicators over the last 90 years and geostatistical correlation methods. This approach will allow us to better understand the relationship between territorial transformations on the coast and the current coastal vulnerability of this area.

Detecting Areas Vulnerable to Sand Encroachment Using Remote Sensing and GIS Techniques in Nouakchott, Mauritania

Sand dune advances poses a major threat to inhabitants and local authorities in the area of Nouakchott, Mauritania. Despite efforts to control dune mobility, accurate and adequate local studies are still needed to tackle sand encroachment. We have developed a Sand Dune Encroachment Vulnerability Index (SDEVI) to assess Nouakchott’s vulnerability to sand dune encroachment. Said index is based on the geo-physical characteristics of the area (wind direction and intensity, slope and surface height, land use, vegetation or soil properties) with Geographic Information System (GIS) techniques that can support local authorities and decision-makers in implementing preventive measures or reducing impact on the population and urban infrastructures. In order to validate this new index, we use two remote sensing approaches: optical-Sentinel 2 and Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR)–Sentinel 1 data. Results show that the greatest vulnerability is located in the north-eastern part of Nouakchott, where local conditions favor the advance of sand in the city, although medium to high values are also found in the eastern part. Optical images enabled us to distinguish desert sand using the ratio between near infrared/blue bands, and SAR Coherence Change Detection (CCD) imagery was used to assess the degree of stability of those sand bodies. The nature of the SDEVI index allows us to currently assess which areas are vulnerable to sand encroachment since we use long data records. Nevertheless, optical and SAR remote sensing allow sand evolution to be monitored on a near real-time basis.