Coastal and riverine ecosystems as adaptive flood defenses under a changing climate

Wesenbeeck, Bregje K. van; Boer, Wiebe de; Narayan, Siddharth; Star, Wouter R. L. van der; Vries, Mindert de

doi:10.1007/s11027-016-9714-z

Cited by 37 publications

(23 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…This example illustrates that, in order to preserve the aesthetic value of a WHS, very expensive protection measures may have to be pursued. An alternative to hard protection measures may be the use of coastal ecosystems as soft, nature-based protection by attenuating water levels and stimulating sedimentation in certain locations 56 , 57 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mediterranean UNESCO World Heritage at risk from coastal flooding and erosion due to sea-level rise

et al. 2018

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UNESCO World Heritage sites (WHS) located in coastal areas are increasingly at risk from coastal hazards due to sea-level rise. In this study, we assess Mediterranean cultural WHS at risk from coastal flooding and erosion under four sea-level rise scenarios until 2100. Based on the analysis of spatially explicit WHS data, we develop an index-based approach that allows for ranking WHS at risk from both coastal hazards. Here we show that of 49 cultural WHS located in low-lying coastal areas of the Mediterranean, 37 are at risk from a 100-year flood and 42 from coastal erosion, already today. Until 2100, flood risk may increase by 50% and erosion risk by 13% across the region, with considerably higher increases at individual WHS. Our results provide a first-order assessment of where adaptation is most urgently needed and can support policymakers in steering local-scale research to devise suitable adaptation strategies for each WHS.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mediterranean UNESCO World Heritage at risk from coastal flooding and erosion due to sea-level rise

et al. 2018

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“…This constitutes yet another step towards largescale implementation of vegetation and levee combinations, or so-called hybrid solutions 35 . These solutions have already been promoted as the way forward under climate change and rising sea levels, as they are considered more adaptive and resilient to uncertainty in environmental boundary conditions 8,36 . In addition, combinations of vegetated foreshores and levees offer multiple benefits next to flood risk mitigation, such as recreation, biodiversity and fisheries 36 .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For this, the spectral wave model SWAN (Simulating Waves Nearshore) 22 was used. This model was used in similar studies on wave attenuation over vegetated foreshores 8,10,14 and is frequently used in engineering practice. Suzuki et al (2011) implemented the effects of vegetation in SWAN based on the phase-averaged wave energy dissipation model due to rigid stems for irregular waves 23,24 .…”

Section: Implications Of Measurements For Wave-vegetation Modellingmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Woods versus waves: Wave attenuation through non-uniform forests under extreme conditions

Wesenbeeck¹,

Wolters²,

Antolínez³

et al. 2021

Preprint

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Worldwide, communities are facing increasing flood risk, due to more frequent and intense hazards and rising exposure through more people living along coastlines and in flood plains. Nature-based Solutions (NbS), such as mangroves, and riparian forests, offer huge potential for adaptation and risk reduction. The capacity of trees and forests to attenuate waves and mitigate storm damages receives massive attention, especially after extreme storm events. However, application of forests in flood mitigation strategies remains limited to date, due to lack of real-scale measurements on the performance under extreme conditions. Experiments executed in a large-scale flume with a willow forest to dissipate waves show that trees are hardly damaged and strongly reduce wave and run-up heights, even when maximum wave heights are up to 2.5 meters. It was observed for the first time that the surface area of the tree canopy is most relevant for wave attenuation, but that the very flexible leaves hardly add to effectiveness. Overall, the study shows that forests can play a significant role in reducing wave heights and run-up under extreme conditions. Currently, this potential is hardly used but may result in considerable cost savings in levee designs.

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“…are the attenuation and/or dissipation of waves, sediment retention and/or stabilization and the reduction of flooding and spray [22]. The use of ecosystems for coastal protection has attracted great interest in recent years [10,[23][24][25].…”

Section: Ecosystem Servicesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Enhancing the Ecological Value of Sea Dikes

Scheres¹,

Schüttrumpf²

2019

Water

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Sea dikes protect low-lying hinterlands along many coasts all around the world. Commonly, they are designed as embankments with grass covers or grey revetments accounting for the prevailing hydraulic loads. So far, incorporation of ecological aspects in the dike design is limited. With regard to increasing environmental awareness and climate change adaptation needs, the present study reviews methods for ecological enhancement of sea dikes and discusses limitations and challenges related to these methods. In doing so, one key aspect is to maintain dike safety while increasing the ecological value. Potential for ecological enhancement of sea dikes has been found regarding natural or nature-based solutions in the foreshore, dike surface protection measures (vegetated dike covers, hard revetments and dike roads) and the dike geometry. While natural and nature-based solutions in the foreland are investigated thoroughly, so far only few experiences with ecological enhancements of the dike structure itself were gained resulting in uncertainties and knowledge gaps concerning the implementation and efficiency. Additional to technical uncertainties, engineers and ecologists meet the challenge of interdisciplinary collaboration under consideration of societal needs and expectations.

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Coastal and riverine ecosystems as adaptive flood defenses under a changing climate

Cited by 37 publications

References 31 publications

Mediterranean UNESCO World Heritage at risk from coastal flooding and erosion due to sea-level rise

Mediterranean UNESCO World Heritage at risk from coastal flooding and erosion due to sea-level rise

Woods versus waves: Wave attenuation through non-uniform forests under extreme conditions

Enhancing the Ecological Value of Sea Dikes

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