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Coastal flood alleviation through management interventions under changing climate conditions

William Bennett Orcid Logo, Harshinie Karunarathna Orcid Logo

International Journal of Disaster Resilience in the Built Environment, Volume: ahead-of-print, Issue: ahead-of-print

Swansea University Authors: William Bennett Orcid Logo, Harshinie Karunarathna Orcid Logo

Abstract

PurposeCoastal flooding has disastrous consequences on people, infrastructure, properties and the environment. Increasing flood risk as a result of global climate change is a significant concern both within the UK and globally. To counter any potential increase in future flooding, a range of potenti...

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Published in: International Journal of Disaster Resilience in the Built Environment
ISSN: 1759-5908
Published: Emerald 2019
Online Access: Check full text

URI: https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa52961
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Abstract: PurposeCoastal flooding has disastrous consequences on people, infrastructure, properties and the environment. Increasing flood risk as a result of global climate change is a significant concern both within the UK and globally. To counter any potential increase in future flooding, a range of potential management options are being considered. This study aims to explore future coastal management practice for flood alleviation, incorporating the influence of climate change.Design/methodology/approachThe Taf estuary in South West Wales, a macro-tidal estuary which has a history of coastal flooding, was chosen as the case study in this paper to investigate the impact of coastal management interventions such as construction of hard defences, managed realignment or altering land use of affiliated ecosystems such as salt marshes on the complex hydrodynamics and hence flooding of the surrounding areas of the estuary. The study was carried out using a numerical hydrodynamic model of the Taf estuary, developed using the process-based Delft3D modelling software.FindingsThe role of the selected management interventions on coastal flooding was investigated using an extreme storm condition, both with and without the impact of future sea level rise. The results highlight the scale of the effect of sea level rise, with the selected management interventions revealing that minimising the increase in flooding in future requires careful consideration of the available options.Originality/valueThis paper explores the highlighted role of coastal management practice in future with the influence of climate change to study how effective alternative methods can be for flood alleviation.
Issue: ahead-of-print