Characterizing flood hazard risk in data-scarce areas,using a remote sensing and GIS-based flood hazard index

The frequency in occurrence and severity of floods has increased globally. However, many regions around the globe, especially in developing countries, lack the necessary field monitoring data to characterize flood hazard risk. This paper puts forward methodology for developing flood hazard maps that define flood hazard risk, using a remote sensing and GIS-based flood hazard index (FHI), for the Nyamwamba watershed in western Uganda. The FHI was compiled using analytical hierarchy process and considered slope, flow accumulation, drainage network density, distance from drainage channel, geology, land use/cover and rainfall intensity as the flood causative factors. These factors were derived from Landsat, SRTM and PERSIANN remote sensing data products, except for geology that requires field data. The resultant composite FHI yielded a flood hazard map pointing out that over 11 and 18% of the study area was very highly and highly susceptible to flooding, respectively, while the remaining area ranged from medium to very low risk. The resulting flood hazard map was further verified using inundation area of a historical flood event in the study area. The proposed methodology was effective in producing a flood hazard map at the watershed local scale, in a data-scarce region, useful in devising flood mitigation measures.     

Assessment of flood hazard,vulnerability and risk of mid-eastern Dhaka using DEM and 1D hydrodynamic model

Floods are regular feature in rapidly urbanizing Dhaka, the capital city of Bangladesh. It is observed that about 60% of the eastern Dhaka regularly goes under water every year in monsoon due to lack of flood protection. Experience gathered from past devastating floods shows that, besides structural approach, non-structural approach such as flood hazard map and risk map is effective tools for reducing flood damages. In this paper, assessment of flood hazard by developing a flood hazard map for mid-eastern Dhaka (37.16 km²) was carried out by 1D hydrodynamic simulation on the basis of digital elevation model (DEM) data from Shuttle Radar Topography Mission and the hydrologic field-observed data for 32 years (1972–2004). As the topography of the area has been considerably changed due to rapid land-filling by land developers which was observed in recent satellite image (DigitalGlobe image; Date of imagery: 7th March 2007), the acquired DEM data were modified to represent the current topography. The inundation simulation was conducted using hydrodynamic program HEC-RAS for flood of 100-year return period. The simulation has revealed that the maximum depth is 7.55 m at the southeastern part of that area and affected area is more than 50%. A flood hazard map was prepared according to the simulation result using the software ArcGIS. Finally, to assess the flood risk of that area, a risk map was prepared where risk was defined as the product of hazard (i.e., depth of inundation) and vulnerability (i.e., the exposure of people or assets to flood). These two maps should be helpful in raising awareness of inhabitants and in assigning priority for land development and for emergency preparedness including aid and relief operations in high-risk areas in the future.     

Delineating flood risk areas in Greater Dhaka of Bangladesh using geoinformatics

This paper illustrates the development of flood hazard and risk maps in Greater Dhaka of Bangladesh using geoinformatics. Multi-temporal RADARSAT SAR and GIS data were employed to delineate flood hazard and risk areas for the 1998 historical flood. Flood-affected frequency and flood depth were estimated from multi-date SAR data and considered as hydrologic parameters for the evaluation of flood hazard. Using land-cover, gemorphic units and elevation data as thematic components, flood hazard maps were created by considering the interactive effect of flood frequency and flood water depth concurrently. Analysis revealed that a major portion of Greater Dhaka was exposed to high to very high hazard zones while a smaller portion (2.72%) was free from the potential flood hazard. Flood risk map according to administrative division showed that 75.35% of Greater Dhaka was within medium to very high risk areas of which 53.39% of areas are believed to be fully urbanized by the year 2010.     

Economic impact upon agricultural production from extreme flood events in Quang Nam,central Vietnam

Natural Hazards - Quang Nam province, central Vietnam, is situated within the tropical monsoon and typhoon zone of south-east Asia and is susceptible to extreme floods. Historical water level data...     

A new approach for forest fire risk modeling using fuzzy AHP and GIS in Hyrcanian forests of Iran

The presented research was performed in order to model the fire risk in a part of Hyrcanian forests of Iran. The fuzzy sets integrated with analytic hierarchy process (AHP) in a decision-making algorithm using geographic information system (GIS) was used to model the fire risk in the study area. The used factors included four major criteria (topographic, biologic, climatic, and human factors) and their 17 sub-criteria. Fuzzy AHP method was used for estimating the importance (weight) of the effective factors in forest fire. Based on this modeling method, the expert ideas were used to express the relative importance and priority of the major criteria and sub-criteria in forest fire risk in the study area. The expert ideas mean was analyzed based on fuzzy extent analysis. Then, the fuzzy weights of criteria and sub-criteria were obtained. The major criteria models and fire risk model were presented based on these fuzzy weights. On the other hand, the spatial data of 17 sub-criteria were provided and organized in GIS to obtain the sub-criteria maps. Each sub-criterion map was converted to raster format and it was reclassified based on risk of its classes to fire occurrence. Then, all sub-criteria maps were converted to fuzzy format using fuzzy membership function in GIS. The fuzzy map of each major criterion (topographic, biologic, climatic, and human criteria) was obtained by weighted overlay of its sub-criteria fuzzy maps considering to major criterion model in GIS. Finally, the fuzzy map of fire risk was obtained by weighted overlay of major criteria fuzzy maps considering to fire risk model in GIS. The actual fire map was used for validation of fire risk model and map. The results showed that the fuzzy estimated weights of human, biologic, climatic, and topographic criteria in fire risk were 0.301, 0.2595, 0.2315, and 0.208, respectively. The results obtained from the fire risk map showed that 38.74% of the study area has very high and high risk for fire occurrence. Results of validation of the fire risk map showed that 80% of the actual fires were located in the very high and high risk areas in fire risk map. It can show the acceptable accuracy of the fire risk model and map obtained from fuzzy AHP in this study. The obtained fire risk map can be used as a decision support system for predicting of the future fires in the study area.     

Geomorphological zoning for flood inundation using satellite data

The authors investigated geomorphological features on the central plain of Thailand utilizing satellite remote sensing data and made geomorphological land classification map showing flood-stricken area. Land classification maps showing flood-striken area tell us former flood inundation area, such as inundation depth, inundation width, flood flow course and flood direction, as well as estimating of the features of flooding. Thus map is useful for planning of flood control works.We classified land form units in the central plain of Thailand as following; delta, tidal flat, lagoon, mud spit, back marsh, natural levee, fan and former river course and so on. After that, the principal component analysis is applied to Landsat TM data and gives good results for photo interpretation of land form units and we transfer geomorphological land classification map to make zoning map of flood risk for the purpose of evaluating the flood damages.     

Preliminary flood risk assessment: the case of Athens

Flood mapping, especially in urban areas, is a demanding task requiring substantial (and usually unavailable) data. However, with the recent introduction of the EU Floods Directive (2007/60/EC), the need for reliable, but cost effective, risk mapping at the regional scale is rising in the policy agenda. Methods are therefore required to allow for efficiently undertaking what the Directive terms “preliminary flood risk assessment,” in other words a screening of areas that could potentially be at risk of flooding and that consequently merit more detailed attention and analysis. Such methods cannot rely on modeling, as this would require more data and effort that is reasonable for this high-level, screening phase. This is especially true in urban areas, where modeling requires knowledge of the detailed urban terrain, the drainage networks, and their interactions. A GIS-based multicriteria flood risk assessment methodology was therefore developed and applied for the mapping of flood risk in urban areas. This approach quantifies the spatial distribution of flood risk and is able to deal with uncertainties in criteria values and to examine their influence on the overall flood risk assessment. It can further assess the spatially variable reliability of the resulting maps on the basis of the choice of method used to develop the maps. The approach is applied to the Greater Athens area and validated for its central and most urban part. A GIS database of economic, social, and environmental criteria contributing to flood risk was created. Three different multicriteria decision rules (Analytical Hierarchy Process, Weighted Linear Combination and Ordered Weighting Averaging) were applied, to produce the overall flood risk map of the area. To implement this methodology, the IDRISI Andes GIS software was customized and used. It is concluded that the results of the analysis are a reasonable representation of actual flood risk, on the basis of their comparison with historical flood events.     

Municipal flood hazard mapping: the case of British Columbia,Canada

Historical responses to flood hazards have stimulated development in hazardous areas. Scholars recommend an alternative approach to reducing flood losses that combines flood hazard mapping with land use planning to identify and direct development away from flood-prone areas. Creating flood hazard maps to inform municipal land use planning is an expensive and complex process that can require resources not always available at the municipal government level. Senior levels of government in some countries have addressed deficiencies in municipal capacity by assuming an active role in producing municipal flood hazard maps. In other countries, however, senior governments do not contribute to municipal flood hazard mapping. Despite a large body of research on the importance of municipal land use planning for addressing flood hazards, little is known about the extent of flood hazard information that is available to municipalities that do not receive outside assistance from senior governments for flood hazard mapping. We assess the status of flood hazard maps in British Columbia, where municipalities do not receive outside assistance in creating the maps. Our analysis shows that these maps are generally outdated and/or lacking a variety of features that are critical for supporting effective land use planning. We recommend that senior levels of government play an active role in providing municipalities with (1) detailed and current information regarding flood hazards in their jurisdiction and (2) compelling incentives to utilize this information.     

Vulnerability assessment of an urban flood in Nigeria: Abeokuta flood 2007

The paper presents the result of a vulnerability assessment of urban dwellers to a major flood hazard in Abeokuta, southwestern Nigeria in July 2007. This was achieved by means of questionnaire survey administered to 248 flood area residents. Flood vulnerability was assessed by examining exposure, susceptibility, and coping indicators in the study area. Findings of the study show that although about 50% of respondents had experienced floods, in Abeokuta or elsewhere in the past, majority (66%) did not anticipate a flood event of such magnitude to occur despite its location on a flood plain and, therefore, were unprepared for such hazard. Pre-warning of the flood event was generally lacking among flood area residents as only 8% of respondents indicated pre-warning, which was based on personal observations. Response to the flood hazard was mainly reactive for both private and public agents as flood risk reduction measures were not in place.     

Landslide vulnerability and risk assessment for multi-hazard scenarios using airborne laser scanning data (LiDAR)

Landslide hazard, vulnerability, and risk-zoning maps are considered in the decision-making process that involves land use/land cover (LULC) planning in disaster-prone areas. The accuracy of these analyses is directly related to the quality of spatial data needed and methods employed to obtain such data. In this study, we produced a landslide inventory map that depicts 164 landslide locations using high-resolution airborne laser scanning data. The landslide inventory data were randomly divided into a training dataset: 70 % for training the models and 30 % for validation. In the initial step, a susceptibility map was developed using logistic regression approach in which weights were assigned to every conditioning factor. A high-resolution airborne laser scanning data (LiDAR) was used to derive the landslide conditioning factors for the spatial prediction of landslide hazard areas. The resultant susceptibility was validated using the area under the curve method. The validation result showed 86.22 and 84.87 % success and prediction rates, respectively. In the second stage, a landslide hazard map was produced using precipitation data for 15 years. The precipitation maps were subsequently prepared and show two main categories (two temporal probabilities) for the study area (the average for any day in a year and abnormal intensity recorded in any day for 15 years) and three return periods (15-, 10-, and 5-year periods). Hazard assessment was performed for the entire study area. In the third step, an element at risk map was prepared using LULC, which was considered in the vulnerability assessment. A vulnerability map was derived according to the following criteria: cost, time required for reconstruction, relative risk of landslide, risk to population, and general effect to certain damage. These criteria were applied only on the LULC of the study area because of lack of data on the population and building footprint and types. Finally, risk maps were produced using the derived vulnerability and hazard information. Thereafter, a risk analysis was conducted. The LULC map was cross-matched with the results of the hazard maps for the return period, and the losses were aggregated for the LULC. Then, the losses were calculated for the three return periods. The map of the risk areas may assist planners in overall landslide hazard management.     

Evaluation of food risk parameters in the Day River Flood Diversion Area,Red River Delta,Vietnam

An interdisciplinary approach is necessary for flood risk assessment. Questions are often raised about which factors should be considered important in assessing the flood risk in an area and how to quantify these factors. This article defines and quantitatively evaluates the flood risk factors that would affect the Day River Flood Diversion Area in the context of integrated flood management in the Red River Delta, Vietnam. Expert analysis, in conjunction with field survey and Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP), is applied to define and quantify parameters (indicators, subcomponents, and components) that contribute to flood risk. Flood duration is found to be the most prominent indicator in determining flood hazard. Residential buildings, population, and pollution are other fairly significant indicators contributing to flood vulnerability from the economic, social, and environmental perspectives, respectively. The study results will be useful in developing comprehensive flood risk maps for policy-makers and responsible authorities. Besides, local residents will also be able to implement suitable measures for reducing flood risk in the study area.     

Flash flood inundation map preparation for wadis in arid regions

Flood inundation maps are dependent on the topographic and geomorphologic features of a wadi (drainage basin) in arid regions, which are most susceptible for potential flash flood occurrences, such as in the southwestern part of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It is not possible to control the potential flood hazards by using only technological instruments that forewarn the occurrences or imminence. Additionally, it would be better to prepare flood risk maps so as to delineate the risky areas to educate the administrators and local settlers. The availability of these maps is the key requirement for any urban development that entails land use allocation, identification of dam, tunnel, highway, bridge sites, and infrastructure locations for sustainable future. This paper suggests the necessary steps in flood inundation map preparation after determining the possible flood discharge. For this purpose, a set of critical cross-sections along the possible flood plain are taken in the field with surveying methods and measurements. The calculation of the average flow velocity in each section is calculated according to the cross-section geometric, hydraulic, and material properties. Synthetic rating curves (SRC) are prepared for each cross section, which are very useful especially in arid and semi-arid regions where there are no perennial surface water flows for natural rating curve measurements. All the SRCs appear in the form of power function which relates the flow depth to discharge in a given cross section. It is then possible to calculate the flood depth in the cross section through its SRC. Depending on the cross-section shape, the flood width can be calculated. The connection of a series of widths on a scaled topographic map delineates the flood inundation area. If digital elevation map (DEM) is available, then the SRCs can be integrated with these maps and the flood inundation delineation can be achieved automatically. Since DEMs are not available, the topographic maps are used for this purpose in order to delineate flood inundation areas within wadis Hali and Yiba from the southwestern Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.     

Probability-weighted hazard maps for comparing different flood risk management strategies: a case study

The study proposes an original methodology for producing probability-weighted hazard maps based on an ensemble of numerical simulations. These maps enable one to compare different strategies for flood risk management. The methodology was applied over a 270-km² flood-prone area close to the left levee system of a 28-km reach of the river Reno (Northern Central Italy). This reach is characterised by the presence of a weir that allows controlled flooding of a large flood-prone area during major events. The proposed probability-weighted hazard maps can be used to evaluate how a structural measure such as the mentioned weir alters the spatial variability of flood hazard in the study area. This article shows an application by constructing two different flood hazard maps: a first one which neglects the presence of the weir using a regular levee system instead, and a second one that reflects the actual geometry with the weir. Flood hazard maps were generated by combining the results of several inundation scenarios, simulated by coupling 1D- and 2D-hydrodynamic models.     

GIS-based flood risk assessment in suburban areas: a case study of the Fangshan District,Beijing

Suburban areas have become rapid development zones during China’s current urbanization. Generally, these areas are also regional precipitation centers that are prone to flood disasters. Therefore, it is important to assess the flood risk in suburban areas. In this study, flood risk was defined as the product of hazard and vulnerability based on disaster risk theory. A risk assessment index system was established, and the analytic hierarchy process method was used to determine the index weight. The Fangshan District in Beijing, China, which is an example of a typical suburban area undergoing rapid urbanization, was selected for this study. Six factors were considered in relation to hazard, and three factors were considered for vulnerability. Each indicator was discretized, standardized, weighted, and then combined to obtain the final flood risk map in a geographical information system environment. The results showed that the high and very high risk zones in the Fangshan District were primarily concentrated on Yingfeng Street, Xingcheng Street, Xincheng Street, and Chengguanzhen Street. The comparison to an actual flood disaster suggested that the method was effective and practical. The method can quantitatively reflect the relative magnitude and spatial distribution patterns of flood risk in a region. The method can be applied easily to most suburban areas in China for land use planning and flood risk management.     

Integrated risk assessment of flood disaster based on improved set pair analysis and the variable fuzzy set theory in central Liaoning Province,China

This study presents the methodology and procedure for risk assessment of flood disasters in central Liaoning Province, which was supported by geographical information systems (GIS) and technology of natural disaster risk assessment. On the basis of the standard formulation of natural disaster risk and flood disaster risk index, of which weights were developed using combined weights of entropy, the relative membership degree functions of variable fuzzy set (VFS) theory were calculated using improved set pair analysis, while level values were calculated using VFSs, including hazard levels, exposure levels, vulnerability levels and restorability levels, and the flood risk level for each assessment unit was obtained using the natural disaster index method. Consequently, integrated flood risk map was carried out by GIS spatial analysis technique. The results show that the southwestern and central parts of the study area possess higher risk, while the northwestern and southeastern parts possess lower risk. The results got by the assessment model fits the area of historical flood data; this study offer new insights and possibility to carry out an efficient way for flood disaster prevention and mitigation. The study also provides scientific reference in flood risk management for local and national governmental agencies.     

广州东濠涌流域城市洪涝灾害情景模拟与风险评估

绘制直观与可靠的城市洪涝灾害风险区划图,为城市防洪排涝相关部门决策提供参考依据。以广州市东濠涌流域为研究区域,综合考虑城市降雨、径流、地形和排水系统特性,构建基于InfoWorks ICM的一维-二维耦合城市洪涝仿真模型,模拟暴雨重现期为1年、5年、50年情景下的洪涝过程并获取致灾因子数据。调研分析区域的孕灾环境、承灾体和防灾减灾能力概况,结合层次分析法、评价等级和阈值划分等进行洪涝灾害风险评估。结果表明:城市洪涝仿真模型在一维排水系统和二维地面淹没模拟上均有较好的精度和可靠性,保证了致灾因子数据的可靠性;风险区划图能较好地反映流域的风险分布;随着重现期增大,较高、高风险区的面积显著增加,为防洪排涝重点关注区域。     

Flood hazard map of La Trinidad (NW Nicaragua). Method and results

During the Mitch Hurricane event (October 1998), severe floods occurred in the village of La Trinidad (Departamento de Estelí, NW Nicaragua), which spreads at the margin of La Trinidad river. As a consequence, the need for hazard assessment and land use planning to reduce the effects of these natural processes arose. Nicaragua is a developing country, which means that there is a scarcity of good quality data on which to base these hazard assessments (i.e., lack of detailed topographic maps, lack of meteorological and discharge data series). Therefore, the main objective of the present work was to generate a flood hazard map of La Trinidad by means of a simple method, with a resulting map easy to understand and to use by the municipality for land use planning. There is no topographic map of the area at a more detailed scale than 1:50,000. So the main document that supports all the data and on which the final hazard map was based is the orthophotograph at 1:5,000 scale (generated from vertical aerial photographs taken in 2000). The method used was based on classical interpretation of vertical aerial photographs (pre Mitch and a post Mitch event), detailed field work, inquiries among the population and analysis of the main pattern of storms occurring in the area. All these data allowed the reconstruction of different extensions and water levels corresponding to events of different frequency and magnitude, and the qualitative association of them to three hazard levels by means of energy and frequency. The use of orthophotographs of 1:5,000 proved to be very useful both for the development of the work and for the presentation of the final map, because they are very easily understandable for people not trained in the interpretation of topographic maps.     

城市泥石流风险评价探讨

探讨了城市泥石流风险评价的系统方法,该方法包括泥石流扇形地危险区划、城市易损性分析和城市泥石流风险评价三个主要内容。泥石流堆积扇危险区划是基于数值模拟计算出的泥深和流速分布图进行叠合完成的。以美国高分辨率的“快鸟”卫星影像为数据源,完成了研究区的城市土地覆盖类型遥感解译,在此基础上完成了城市泥石流易损性分析,应用地理信息系统提供的统计和分析工具,完成了研究区泥石流风险评价。该风险区划图可用于指导对泥石流易泛区的不同风险地带的土地利用进行规划和决策,从而达到规避和减轻灾害的目的,也为生活在泥石流危险区的城市居民提供有关灾害风险信息,以作避难和灾害防治的依据。     

An innovative micro-scale approach for vulnerability and flood risk assessment with the application to property-level protection adoptions

Economic damage assessment for flood risk estimation is established in many countries, but attentions have been focused on macro- or meso-scale approaches and less on micro-scale approaches. Whilst the macro- or meso-scale approaches of flood damage assessment are suitable for regional- or national-oriented studies, micro-scale approaches are more suitable for cost–benefit analysis of engineered protection measures. Furthermore, there remains lack of systematic and automated approaches to estimate economic flood damage for multiple flood scenarios for the purpose of flood risk assessment. Studies on flood risk have also been driven by the assumption of stationary characteristic of flood hazard, hence the stationary-oriented vulnerability assessment. This study proposes a novel approach to assess vulnerability and flood risk and accounts for adaptability of the approach to nonstationary conditions of flood hazard. The approach is innovative in which an automated concurrent estimation of economic flood damage for a range of flood events on the basis of a micro-scale flood risk assessment is made possible. It accounts for the heterogeneous distribution of residential buildings of a community exposed to flood hazard. The feasibility of the methodology was tested using real historical flow records and spatial information of Teddington, London. Vulnerability curves and residual risk associated with a number of alternative extents of property-level protection adoptions are estimated by the application of the proposed methodology. It is found that the methodology has the capacity to provide valuable information on vulnerability and flood risk that can be integrated in a practical decision-making process for a reliable cost–benefit analysis of flood risk reduction options.