CRUE ERA-Net identifies new research needs to support the EU Floods Directive
The report, based on an extensive inventory across eleven European countries, clearly shows the need for more research to support implementation of the EU Floods Directive, particularly in social sciences and transdisciplinary research. More research is required on flood risk mapping, public education, integrated water management, spatial planning and climate change adaptation. In addition, there was a clear indication of research needs on flood mitigation (forecasting and crisis management), impact assessment and recovery. A final but crucial research need relates to the assessment of flood risk strategies. Given the close links to the EU Floods Directive and tight timescales for implementation, CRUE will publish a second call for proposals this summer. This call is likely to focus on two critical emerging needs ‘Flood event management’ and ‘Public perception and risk awareness’. The remaining research needs will be included in CRUE’s upcoming Research Agenda. For people in Europe, floods are amongst the most frequent natural events, with the most far-reaching consequences. In Europe, over 3 billion Euros is spent each year in order to prevent and mitigate flood damage. On top of this, over 55 million Euros per year is spent on flood-related research. In order to get well-aimed flood-related research, it is crucial to have an adequate overview of current research needs.
Countries
Netherlands