To fulfil the new safety standards of the Netherlands against flooding in the future, a great deal of work needs to be performed to prepare the flood defences system, at a quicker pace than is currently achieved. For this reason the HWBP is researching methods which can improve the efficiency of dike reinforcement projects. This thesis was initiated to analyse what could be done in the transition period between registration of a dike reinforcement project at the HWBP programme and the start of the reconnaissance phase of the project, as it is potentially useful to utilize this time period. This thesis focuses on the impact of implementing monitoring and soil investigation earlier was analysed, because information collected before or during the transition period can be used for the benefit of the dike reinforcement projects. For this a theoretical case of the dike trajectory at Amerongen was used, for which piping is the dominant failure mechanism. The benefit in performing additional soil investigation and monitoring is dependent on the project phase in which the measurements are started and/or performed. The aim of this research was determine when the methods need to be implemented, how much investment is needed and what the expected benefit of the measures is. The benefit can be expressed in expected project costs in case of stronger parameters are found and in expected annual risk if weaker parameters are found. For the applied case dike trajectory at Amerongen the expected reduction in project costs is 19,4% of the initially estimated project costs if the measurements were performed or started early. In comparison, the expected project cost reduction for the common project structure is 13,3%. The investment costs due to monitoring and soil investigation was 4,6% of the estimated project cost when starting early and 4,1% for the common project structure. In conclusion, by investing 0,5% of the estimated project costs on starting monitoring and soil investigation early in the dike reinforcement project a 6,1% reduction in the project costs is expected. ... Read more

The report starts in Chapter 1 with an introduction to the Sponge City Programme (SCP) in China and the project area which is the ErQi International Business District in Wuhan. In this chapter, the problem statement, our collaboration with Arcadis and our project goals are also introduced. Chapter 2 delves into our methodology to tackle the brief. Starting from how we shaped our interdisciplinary approach, we explain our approach towards the project and our decision to include resiliency with the Sponge City concept as an objective. We continue by providing background information on ErQi area in Chapter 3 to get an overall understanding of the planned urban design and potential urban flooding. To provide a thorough analysis and recommendations for the selection process of adaptation measures to mitigate excess rainfall as part of the SCP in the context of ErQi area, an assessment of the Wuhan Sponge City criteria, a stakeholder analysis complemented by a spatial assessment was performed and described in Chapter 4. Setting the context allows understanding the complexity of the system and its constraints in the implementation of the SCP. Thus, we decided to first focus on the implementation of low-impact development (LID) measures using a multi-criteria analysis (MCA) presented in Chapter 4 and then developed an integrated and resilient system design later in the report. As the Sponge City is not sufficient to cope with high precipitation events (Arcadis, 2017), the project combines sponge city and resiliency principles in an integrated system approach.
The guiding resilient design principles of the Sponge City are further described and explained in Chapter 5 and applied in the opportunistic design process in Chapter 6, bridging the research with the designs. Here the designs of the MengQiao Bridge and the Water Road are presented along with their proposed effects on the urban flooding. Chapter 7 serves to assess the designs through the criteria of the integrated sponge city to improve flood resilience. The following chapter serves to share our conclusions on the challenges for implementing a functioning of the SCP that includes the concept of resilience. It also touches upon the difficulty of implementing the value-based design in a profit-based context. The final chapter is composed of five parts, all of which is our recommendations. It starts with our recommendations to improve the Sponge City criteria to make them more effective in reaching the goals of the programme. Then we give our recommendations for the selection process of LID followed by what we have learned of this interdisciplinary approach. That includes what we consider to be crucial to achieving a genuinely interdisciplinary process resulting in an integrated design. The final part of the chapter is dedicated to what we believe should be researched further. We believe a more in-depth assessment of the designs with the Sponge City criteria and input of the stakeholders is required for a final design. Further, the working definitions and approach of the Wuhan city government need to be considered, and an approach that assesses the necessary maintenance protocols is necessary.
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