Failure probability of regional flood defences

Polders in the Netherlands are protected from flooding by primary and regional flood defence systems. During the last decade, scientific research in flood risk focused on the development of a probabilistic approach to quantify the probability of flooding of the primary flood defence system. This paper proposed a methodology to quantify the...

Risk reduction by combining nature values with flood protection?

In the Netherlands, the concept of a multifunctional dike has already often been implemented, and has been identified as a promising climate adaptation measure. In a multifunctional dike, functions like urban development, transport infrastructure, recreation, agriculture or nature are deliberately combined with its primary flood protection...

The use of equivalent annual cost for cost benefit analyses in flood risk reduction strategies

In many parts of the world, flooding is a big risk. There are numerous strategies to reduce flood risk. The amount of flood risk reduction strategies grows exponentially with the amount of possible measures that can be implemented and possible timings when measures can be implemented. In this paper, the use of a financial method called ...

Comparing overflow and wave-overtopping induced breach initiation mechanisms in an embankment breach experiment

As part of the SAFElevee project Delft University of Technology collabored with Flanders Hydraulics Research, and Infram B.V. in the preperation and execution of a full scale embankment breach experiment in November 2015. This breach experiment was performed on an 3.5m high embankment with a sand core and clay outer layer situated along the...

Comparison of evacuation methods used in the Netherlands and the USACE Dam and Levee Safety Programs for the Natomas Basin (CA)

Both in the USA and in the Netherlands, extensive studies on approaches for identifying flood risks (the combination of levee failure probabilities and consequences) are ongoing. A related topic concerns evacuation and emergency management (EEM). The magnitude of life loss is directly influenced by the effectiveness of EEM. Different models can...

On the importance of analyzing flood defense failures

Flood defense failures are rare events but when they do occur lead to significant amounts of damage. The defenses are usually designed for rather low-frequency hydraulic loading and as such typically at least high enough to prevent overflow. When they fail, flood defenses like levees built with modern design codes usually either fail due to wave...

Uncertainty assessment of a dike with an anchored sheet pile wall using FEM

The Dutch design codes for the dikes with retaining walls rely on Finite Element Analysis (FEM) in combination with partial safety factors. However, this can lead to conservative designs. For this reason, in this study, a reliability analysis is carried out with FEM calculations aiming to demonstrate the feasibility of reliability analysis for a...

Economically optimal safety targets for riverine flood defence systems

A breach in a flood defence will affect the downstream water levels in a riverine system, and therefore the flood risk of the system. The effect of this changed flood risk is used in an economical optimization to assess if this significantly changes the economically optimal safety targets of the flood defences in a riverine system. The impact of...

Unveiling the consequences of your breach growth model choice

Within the frame work of the realisation of the ‘Sigmaplan’ for the river Schelde in Flanders (Belgium), a large-scale dike breaching experiment following overflow was held at Lillo (Antwerp) in 2012. The outcomes of the breach test serve to unveil the impact of a chosen breach growth model, to set application limits, to come up with guidelines...