Review of challenges of and practices for sustainable management of mountain flood hazards

Desirée Tullos (), Elizabeth Byron, Gerald Galloway, Jayantha Obeysekera, Om Prakash and Yung-Hsin Sun
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Desirée Tullos: Oregon State University
Elizabeth Byron: Oregon State University
Gerald Galloway: University of Maryland
Jayantha Obeysekera: South Florida Water Management District
Om Prakash: WEST Consultants
Yung-Hsin Sun: MWH Global

Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, 2016, vol. 83, issue 3, No 21, 1763-1797

Abstract: Abstract Mountain areas are the source of important cultural, ecological, and life-sustaining resources, but are also subject to devastating losses from floods. To work toward reducing these losses, this paper aims to (a) synthesize understanding on the elements that make flood risk management challenging in high mountain areas and (b) identify practices that can be applied in reducing the exposure and vulnerability of mountain communities. Through a review of the literature and case studies, we identified the flood-related challenges associated with complex topography and hydrogeology, insufficient data and infrastructure, weakly defined governance structures, and sensitivity to climatic and landscape changes. We examined five practices needed for reducing flood risk in these vulnerable areas, involving (1) the acquisition and effective dissemination of information about floods, (2) basin-scale hazard assessment and disaster response planning, (3) clearly defining governance responsibilities and distributing them across multiple jurisdictional layers, (4) implementing effective and diverse mitigation measures, and (5) training and engaging local residents and officials in flood risk reduction. Considerations and needs for implementing these practices in mountain areas are discussed, highlighting the commitment of resources needed for distributed governance, effective planning, land use and building regulations, and engagement of the public.

Keywords: Flood risk reduction; Governance structures; Early warning systems; Land use regulations; Hazard assessment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (10)

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DOI: 10.1007/s11069-016-2400-3

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