Coastal Flooding: Innovative Ways to Mitigate the Risks
Are we truly aware and alert to the catastrophic events that can come our way? We all hear about the floods occurring throughout the world. It mostly happens in faraway places and perception is that it does not affect us directly. In fact, between 1998 and 2009, Europe suffered over 213 major floods causing 1126 deaths and at least €50 billion in insured economic losses.
Keeping in mind that trends in sea level rise caused by climate change are increasingly putting our coasts at risk of flooding and erosion, one of the key challenges facing us is to find a means by which to protect our coastal environments and safeguard their various assets.
To promote the concept of Coastal Risk Mitigation and the innovative mitigation methods developed within the THESEUS project, informative booklets are prepared and will be distributed amongst different stakeholders and the general public. As people are more likely to feel connected when they are faced with examples close to their homes, this edition of the THESEUS coastal booklet also illustrates the risk mitigation methods which have been implemented at the Gironde Estuary in France. To optimally reach the people living at this site, the booklets were translated to French and will be distributed in schools, at local fora and during public events.
By Simon Claus and Daphnis De Pooter
