Managing Floods and Factors Increasing Flood Risk Flashcards
Are wetlands a form of soft or hard engineering
soft
Is floodplain zoning a form of soft or hard engineering
soft
Is river restoration a form of soft or hard engineering
soft
Is channel straightening a form of soft or hard engineering
hard
Are flood relief channels a form of soft or hard engineering
hard
Are embankments a form of soft or hard engineering
hard
What is a wetland
wetlands are areas of land (normally floodplains) deliberately allowed to flood to help prevent floods in populated/important areas
What is floodplain zoning
It restricts land uses on certain parts of the floodplain. e.g. no housing to be developed near the river as high risk of flooding, instead the area is used for playing fields or parkland
What is River restoration
Where the course of the river has been changed artificially, it uses natural river processes like meanders to slow down rivers to reduce flooding risks
What is channel straightening
It involves cutting through meanders to create a straight channel, sometimes with concrete embankments. This protects vulnerable places from flooding however it may increase the risk downstream.
What are flood relief channels
Relief channels allow flood water to by-pass land which needs to be protected in times of flood.
What are embankments
They are raised riverbanks which allow the river to hold more water without bursting.
How can high precipitation lead to an increased flood risk
Torrential rain can lead to a large water volume increase within rivers and can cause them to burst causing flash floods
how can steep slopes increase flood risk
Steep slopes encourage rapid transfers of water towards river channels
How can urbanisation increase flood risk
Building on flood plains creates impermeable surfaces which speeds up water flow making flooding more likely
