Warning System Options for Landslide Risk: A Case Study in Upper Austria

This paper explores warning system options in the landslide-prone community of Gmunden/Gschliefgraben in Upper Austria. It describes stakeholder perspectives on the technical, social, economic, legal and institutional characteristics of a warning system. The perspectives differ on issues such as responsibility allocation in decisions regarding warnings, technologies used for monitoring and forecasting, costs and financial aspects, open data policies and the role of the residents. Drawing on the theory of plural rationality and based on a desk study and interviews, stakeholder perspectives and discourses on the warning system problem and its solution were elicited. The perspectives formed the basis for the specification of three technical policy options for a warning system in Gschliefgraben: a minimal-cost and cost-effective system; a technical-expert system; and a resident-centered system. The case demonstrates the importance of accounting for a plurality of values and preferences and of giving voice to competing discourses in communities contemplating warning systems or other public good policies. This paper concludes that understanding the different and often conflicting perspectives and technical policy options is the starting point for formulating an agreed compromise for an effective warning system. We describe the compromise solution in an accompanying paper included in this Special Issue

Drought Management Planning Policy: From Europe to Spain

Climate change is anticipated to exacerbate the frequency, the intensity, and the duration of droughts, especially in Mediterranean countries. This might lead to more serious water scarcity episodes and fierce competition among water users. Are we really prepared to deal efficiently with droughts and water scarcity events? This paper sheds light on this question by reviewing the evolution of European drought management planning policy, recently developed scientific and technical advances, technical guidance documents, and an extensive number of journal papers. More specifically, Spain presents an ideal context to assess how drought risk has been historically addressed because this country has periodically suffered the impacts of intense droughts and water scarcity episodes, and has developed a long track record in water legislation, hydrological planning, and drought risk management strategies. The most recent Drought Management Plans (DMPs) were approved in December 2018. These include an innovative common diagnosis system that distinguishes droughts and water scarcity situations in terms of indicators, triggers, phases, and actions. We can conclude that DMP should be a live and active document able to integrate updated knowledge. The DMP needs also to set out a clear strategy in terms of water use priorities, drought monitoring systems, and measures in each river basin in order to avoid generalist approaches and possible misinterpretation of the DMP that could lead to increase existing and future conflicts

Keeping Feet Dry: Rotterdam’s Experience in Flood Risk and Resilience Building

Rotterdam City in the South of Holland is one of the most vibrant cities you will find in the Netherlands. The city has gone through a transformation from the time it was bombed in the 1940s up to the time that a part of the city was flooded in 1953. Through extensive rebuilding and the Delta Plan project, the city has been well protected against any flooding disaster that may come. However, how resilient really is Rotterdam? Through in-depth interviews of key stakeholders in the City of Rotterdam, the study investigates the collective engagement in the city and how this has helped shape Rotterdam’s position in urban resilience. The study used the Collective Engagement Urban Resilience Framework as a framework to understand how disaster prone cities transform itself to become disaster resilient

Global Risks 2015, 10th Edition.

The 2015 edition of the Global Risks report completes a decade of highlighting the most significant long-term risks worldwide, drawing on the perspectives of experts and global decision-makers. Over that time, analysis has moved from risk identification to thinking through risk interconnections and the potentially cascading effects that result. Taking this effort one step further, this year's report underscores potential causes as well as solutions to global risks. Not only do we set out a view on 28 global risks in the report's traditional categories (economic, environmental, societal, geopolitical and technological) but also we consider the drivers of those risks in the form of 13 trends. In addition, we have selected initiatives for addressing significant challenges, which we hope will inspire collaboration among business, government and civil society communitie

JRC Experience on the Development of Drought Information Systems

From the definition of drought to its monitoring and assessment, this report summarizes the main steps towards an integrated drought information system. Europe, Africa and Latin America are examples, based on the experience of the JRC, that illustrate the challenges for establishing continental drought observatory initiatives. The document is structured in the following way: first an introduction explains what drought is and gives some examples of its impact in society; secondly the framework for establishing a drought monitoring system is described giving examples on the European Drought Observatory and on on-going activities in Africa and Latin America; thirdly the fundamental data and information for measuring drought is described; finally the setting up of an Integrated Drought Information System is discussed and two recent case studies, on Europe and on the Horn of Africa, are presented to illustrate the concept.JRC.H.7-Climate Risk Managemen

Adapting agricultural water governance to climate change : Experience from Germany, Spain and California

This study describes and discusses initiatives taken by public (water) agencies in the state of Brandenburg in Germany, the state of California in the USA and the Ebro River Basin in Spain in response to the challenges which climate change poses for the agricultural water sector. The drivers and actors and the process of changing agricultural water governance are its particular focus. The assumptions discussed are: (i) the degree of planned and anticipatory top-down implementation processes decreases if actions are more decentralized and are introduced at the regional and local level; (ii) the degree of autonomous and responsive adaptation approaches seems to grow with actions at a lower administrative level. Looking at processes of institutional change, a variety of drivers and actors are at work such as changing perceptions of predicted climate impacts; international obligations which force politicians to take action; socio-economic concerns such as the cost of not taking action; the economic interests of the private sector. Drivers are manifold and often interact and, in many cases, reforms in the sector are driven by and associated with larger reform agendas. The results of the study may serve as a starting point in assisting water agencies in developing countries with the elaboration of coping strategies for tackling climate change-induced risks related to agricultural water management

Using sensor web technologies to help predict and monitor floods in urban areas

Includes abstract.Includes bibliographical references.Since flooding is worldwide one of the most common natural disasters, a number of flood prediction and monitoring approaches have been used. A lot of research has been conducted on the prediction and monitoring of floods by using hydrological models. The problem is that current hydrological models do not offer Disaster Management officials or township residents with timely data and information. In South Africa, possible flood warnings are usually communicated by Disaster Management officials using traditional approaches such as loudspeakers, radio and Television (TV). Making calls to warn residents about the possible occurrence of floods by using such means are, however, neither sufficient nor effective. As the result of improved communication, sensor, software and computing capabilities, the use of sensor networks and sensor web for predicting and monitoring environment have been considered in recent years. In order for sensor data such as sensor measurements, sensor descriptions and alerts to be integrated, the Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) introduced the Sensor Web enablement (SWE) standards and suggested different specifications with respect to the geospatial sensor web. The first implementation of the sensor web framework is available. In this research, the results of using the sensor web technologies for predicting and monitoring floods in the urban areas are presented. The aim of this research project is to illustrate how the sensor web technology can help in the prediction and monitoring of floods in the urban areas, particularly in the Alexandra Township (Greater Johannesburg) which has experienced floods each and every year. The focus of this research is on the incorporation of the sensor data into the sensor web technology. The data used as input to sensor web and the hydrological model was historical rainfall data from the South African Weather Service (SAWS). Shuttle Radar Topography Mission (SRTM) free data from the internet was also used in this research