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Lecture 7 Urban Flooding

This document summarizes a lecture on urban flooding. It discusses the main types of urban flooding such as local floods, riverine floods, coastal floods, and flash floods. It then examines the causes of urban flooding which include meteorological factors, hydrological factors, and human factors. The document also looks at how climate change can impact flooding by making weather less predictable and increasing the likelihood of heavy rainfall events. Finally, it analyzes flood mitigation measures, distinguishing between structural measures like dams and dikes, and non-structural measures such as flood zoning, insurance, and forecasting.

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Silas Nana-Baah Mensah
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158 views23 pages

Lecture 7 Urban Flooding

This document summarizes a lecture on urban flooding. It discusses the main types of urban flooding such as local floods, riverine floods, coastal floods, and flash floods. It then examines the causes of urban flooding which include meteorological factors, hydrological factors, and human factors. The document also looks at how climate change can impact flooding by making weather less predictable and increasing the likelihood of heavy rainfall events. Finally, it analyzes flood mitigation measures, distinguishing between structural measures like dams and dikes, and non-structural measures such as flood zoning, insurance, and forecasting.

Uploaded by

Silas Nana-Baah Mensah
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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CIV 457 - Lecture 7

Urban Flooding
Kodwo Beedu Keelson Msc Env Eng

MODULE CONTENTS

Types of Urban Flooding

Causes of Urban Flooding

Climate Change and Flooding

Flood Mitigation Measures

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Types of Urban Flooding

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Types of Urban Flooding

Local Floods

Riverine Floods

Coastal Floods

Flash Floods

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Local Floods

Local floods occur in built environments when surface runoff is in excess of local drainage capacity

Local drainage capacity is primarily made up of a local


stormwater drainage system composed of storm
drainpipes, curb inlets, manholes, minor channels, roadside
ditches and culverts

This system is intended to convey storm flows efficiently to


the communitys primary drainage system, such as the
main river channel or the nearest large body of water.

Rubbish and debris tend to clog the bottlenecks of drainage


facilities, thus reducing the drainage capacity and leading to
increased surface runoff and back up effects.
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Local Floods (2)

Local floods are generally confined to rather small


geographical areas and are normally not of long duration.

However in regions of extended rainy seasons (monsoon


climates), local floods may last for weeks.

Depending on the local hydro-geological situation,


groundwater rising or subsurface flows can be other causes
in the generation of local floods.

Localised flooding occurs many times a year in slum areas


because there are few drains, most of the ground is highly
compacted and pathways between dwellings become
streams after heavy rain.
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Riverine Floods

River floods occur when the river run-off volume exceeds


local flow capacities.

The river levels rise slowly and the period of rise and fall is
particularly long, lasting a few weeks or even months,
particularly in areas with flat slopes and deltaic areas.

River floods are triggered by heavy rainfall or snow melt in


upstream areas, or tidal influence from the downstream.

Failure or bad operation of drainage or flood control works


upstream can also sometimes lead to riverine flooding.

Urban areas situated on the low-lying areas in the middle or


lower reaches of rivers are particularly exposed to
extensive riverine floods.
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Coastal Floods

High tides and storm surges caused by tropical depressions


and cyclones can cause coastal floods in urban areas
located at estuaries, tidal flats and low-lying land near the
sea in general.

Coastline configurations, offshore water depth and estuary


shape can influence the intensity of coastal floods.

Tidal effects in the estuarine reaches can keep the river


levels high for long periods of time and sustain flooding.

Tsunamis, mainly triggered by powerful offshore


earthquakes, can also cause coastal floods though
infrequently.
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Flash Floods

Flash floods occur as a result of the rapid accumulation and


release of runoff waters from upstream mountainous areas,
which can be caused by very heavy rainfall, cloud bursts,
landslides, the sudden break-up of an ice jam or failure of
flood control works.

They are characterized by a sharp rise followed by


relatively rapid recession causing high flow velocities.

Discharges quickly reach a maximum and diminish almost


as rapidly

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Flash Floods (2)

Flash floods are particularly common in mountainous areas


and desert regions but are a potential threat in any area
where the terrain is steep, surface runoff rates are high,
streams flow in narrow canyons and severe thunderstorms
prevail.

They are more destructive than other types of flooding in


densely populated areas because of their unpredictable
nature and unusually strong currents carrying large
concentrations of sediment and debris, giving little or no
time for communities living in its path to prepare for it and
causing major destruction to infrastructure, humans and
whatever else stands in their way.

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Causes of Urban Flooding

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Causes of Flooding

Meteorological Factors

Hydrological Factors

Human Factors

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Meteorological Factors

Rainfall

Cyclonic storms

Small-scale storms

Temperature

Snowfall and snowmelt

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Hydrological Factors

Soil moisture level

Groundwater level prior to storm

Natural surface infiltration rate

Presence of impervious cover

Channel cross-sectional shape and roughness

Presence or absence of over bank flow, channel network

Synchronization of run-offs from various parts of watershed

High tide impeding drainage


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Human Factors

Land-use changes (e.g. surface sealing due to


urbanization, deforestation) increase run-off and may be
sedimentation

Occupation of the flood plain obstructing flows

Inefficiency or non-maintenance of infrastructure

Too efficient drainage of upstream areas increases flood


peaks

Climate change affects magnitude and frequency of


precipitations and floods

Urban microclimate may enforce precipitation events


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Climate Change and Flooding

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What is Climate Change?

Climate change is a significant and lasting change in the


statistical distribution of weather.

Climate change is caused by factors that include oceanic


processes, biotic processes, variations in solar radiation
received by Earth, plate tectonics and volcanic eruptions,
and human-induced alterations of the natural world; these
latter effects are currently causing global warming, and
"climate change" is often used to describe human-specific
impacts.

Factors that can shape climate are called climate forcings


or "forcing mechanisms".

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Climate Change and Flooding

Climate change is making weather less predictable, rains


more uncertain and heavy storm rainfalls more likely.

Urban areas may help to increase thunderstorm activity


because their built-up surfaces attain higher temperatures
than surrounding areas and create a local air circulation
that produces an urban heat island.
Dust particles caught up in that circulation act as nuclei on
which moisture in clouds condenses, forming rain droplets
that eventually may develop into the large rain drops of a
major thunderstorm.
Sea-level rise increases the risk of coastal floods,
particularly in case of storm surges.

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Flood Mitigation Measures

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Classification of Flood Control Measures

Flood control measures are classified as either structural or


non-structural.

Structural measures are related to the change of the basin


and/or the river, such as dams, dikes, channel conveyance
and basin forestation.

Non-structural measures are based on measures related to


flood mitigation, such as: insurance, flood zoning and flood
forecasting.

Structural solutions are costly and are feasible only when


flood damage costs would be greater than the development
of structural measures or when they provide intangible
social benefits.
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Structural Control Measures

Structural measures are classified as either extensive or


intensive.

The extensive measures are developed at basin level, such


a reforestation and soil conservation, among others.

These extensive measures can usually be developed only


in small basins because of the costs of the intervention.
The intensive measures are developed in the river, for
example reservoirs, dikes, river section changes and
slopes, and river deviation.

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Intensive Structural Control Measures

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Non-Structural Flood Control Measures

The main non-structural measures usually are flood zoning,


flood alert or forecasting, insurance and individual
protections.

Flood zoning is the planning of the soil occupation and


regulation in order to decrease future flood impact, since
part of the population will still be living in risk areas;
Flood forecasting is developed in order to alert the
population and decrease damages by floods;
Insurance is a preventive procedure used to recover the
cost damage of floods.
Flood proofing is an individual measure by a property
owner to protect his/her physical assets.

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