TY - JOUR
T1 - How natural foreshores offer flood protection during dike breaches
T2 - An explorative flume study
AU - van den Hoven, Kim
AU - van Belzen, Jim
AU - Kleinhans, Maarten G.
AU - Schot, Dirk M.J.
AU - Merry, Joanne
AU - van Loon-Steensma, Jantsje M.
AU - Bouma, Tjeerd J.
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 The Authors
PY - 2023/11/5
Y1 - 2023/11/5
N2 - In this paper we describe one aspect of nature-based flood protection by foreshores in hybrid flood defences and discuss how foreshore ecosystem restoration can contribute to flood protection. Flood protection consists of flood prevention, by grey, green or hybrid defences, and flood impact reduction, by spatial planning to limit damage and crisis management to limit exposure. Reduction of flood impact is increasingly important because no flood defence system can provide 100% safety, especially with climate change and sea level rise. In this study we aim to understand and visualize the effect of foreshore characteristics (i.e., width, elevation and erodibility) on flooding impact in the hinterland of hybrid flood defences. As it is difficult to research real dike breaches, we do an explorative flume study to analyse the impact of a mimicked dike breach in the hinterland. Our physical scale model showed the presence of a non-erodible foreshore reduces flood damage in the hinterland. With regards to foreshore characteristics, mainly foreshore elevation and erodibility are important, while differing foreshore width has little additional influence. Already a narrow foreshore reduced flood impact in the flume hinterland. Our findings strengthen the appeal to integrate Nature-based flood protection by foreshores in hybrid flood defences. Grey flood defences can be turned into hybrid flood defences even if there is limited space for foreshore ecosystem restoration, for instance by managed realignment.
AB - In this paper we describe one aspect of nature-based flood protection by foreshores in hybrid flood defences and discuss how foreshore ecosystem restoration can contribute to flood protection. Flood protection consists of flood prevention, by grey, green or hybrid defences, and flood impact reduction, by spatial planning to limit damage and crisis management to limit exposure. Reduction of flood impact is increasingly important because no flood defence system can provide 100% safety, especially with climate change and sea level rise. In this study we aim to understand and visualize the effect of foreshore characteristics (i.e., width, elevation and erodibility) on flooding impact in the hinterland of hybrid flood defences. As it is difficult to research real dike breaches, we do an explorative flume study to analyse the impact of a mimicked dike breach in the hinterland. Our physical scale model showed the presence of a non-erodible foreshore reduces flood damage in the hinterland. With regards to foreshore characteristics, mainly foreshore elevation and erodibility are important, while differing foreshore width has little additional influence. Already a narrow foreshore reduced flood impact in the flume hinterland. Our findings strengthen the appeal to integrate Nature-based flood protection by foreshores in hybrid flood defences. Grey flood defences can be turned into hybrid flood defences even if there is limited space for foreshore ecosystem restoration, for instance by managed realignment.
KW - Ecosystem restoration
KW - Flood damage
KW - Flood impact reduction
KW - Hybrid flood defences
KW - Nature-based flood protection
KW - Non-erodible foreshores
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85176589628&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.ecss.2023.108560
DO - 10.1016/j.ecss.2023.108560
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85176589628
SN - 0272-7714
VL - 294
JO - Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science
JF - Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science
M1 - 108560
ER -