Flood management measures

Bioretention area

A bioretention cell, also called a rain garden in the United States

A bioretention area is a stormwater treatment system that is a depression integrated into the landscape. A bioretention area captures runoff from a...

Canal and rill

Canals and rills are open surface water channels with hard edges. They are simply channels that water flows along whereby they can have a variety o...

Deculverting of watercourses

Daylighted Saw Mill River in Getty Square, Yonkers, New York. Previously, the river was covered by a parking lot

This activity involves techniques to resolve the issues created by culverted watercourses. This is predominantly through deculverting, or ‘daylight...

Filter strip

Filter strips are gently sloping, vegetated strips of land that provide opportunities for slow conveyance and infiltration (where appropriate). The...

Filter trench

Filter trenches are shallow excavations filled with rubble or stone that create temporary subsurface storage of stormwater runoff. These trenches c...

Floating agricultural system

Floating agriculture at Lake Inle, Burma (Source: Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)

Floating agriculture is a way of utilising areas which are waterlogged for long periods of time in the production of food. The technology is mainly...

Increase of infiltration capacity

Methods to increase infiltration capacity

Improving the soil infiltration capacity means improving the permeability of the soil. If the infiltration capacity of the soil is increased, more ...

Multi-layer safety as a central concept for flood protection

Multi-layer safety, prevention, sustainable spatial planning and disaster management © Beleidsnota Waterveiligheid 2009-2015

The central concept for the revised water safety policy is formed by 'multi-layer safety'. In this concept safety is assured through multiple layer...

Pond

A pond is a body of standing water, either natural or artificial, that is usually smaller than a lake. They may arise naturally in floodplains as p...

Rain garden

A rain garden is a planted depression or a hole that allows rainwater runoff from impervious urban areas, like roofs, driveways, walkways, parking ...

Rainwater storage beneath sports fields

Sports field Stormwater Harvesting /Recycling:

One option for creating additional water storage facilities is storing in underground crates. This is a hidden technology that fits the criteria of...

Swale

A swale is a low tract of land, especially one that is moist or marshy. The term can refer to a natural landscape feature or a human-created one. A...

Wetland and wetland restoration

The Hamilton Wetland Restoration Project at Whiteside Marsh, on the former Hamilton Air Force Base.

A wetland (Natural or Constructed/Artificial) is a land area that is saturated with water, either permanently or seasonally, such that it takes on ...

Flood management measures

Name	Definition	Co-benefits and impacts	Conditions
Bioretention area	A bioretention area is a stormwater treatment system that is a depression integrated into the landscape. A bioretention area captures ...	Bioretention areas can be planned as landscaping features, they are very effective in removing urban pollutants and can reduce volume ...
Canal and rill	Canals and rills are open surface water channels with hard edges. They are simply channels that water flows along whereby ...	Canals may also serve as treatment channels, they collect water, slow it down and provide storage for silt and oil ...
Deculverting of watercourses	This activity involves techniques to resolve the issues created by culverted watercourses. This is predominantly through deculverting, or ‘daylighting’ which ...	Re-opening existing culverts can deliver a wide range of direct and indirect benefits, including direct benefits to salmonids, eels, coarse ...
Filter strip	Filter strips are gently sloping, vegetated strips of land that provide opportunities for slow conveyance and infiltration (where appropriate). They ...	They treat runoff by vegetative filtering, and promote settlement of particulate pollutants and infiltration. Other advantages are that filter strips ...	Filter strips are not suitable for steep sites or for draining hotspot runoff or for locations where risk of groundwater ...
Filter trench	Filter trenches are shallow excavations filled with rubble or stone that create temporary subsurface storage of stormwater runoff. These trenches ...	Water quality treatment is one of filter trench's main advantages. Amenity and ecology potential are additional ones but lower in ...
Floating agricultural system	Floating agriculture is a way of utilising areas which are waterlogged for long periods of time in the production of ...	The practice helps mitigate land loss through flooding, by allowing cultivation of these areas to continue. In this way, the ...	While this technology works well in some areas today, it is unclear how it may be affected by Sea Level ...
Increase of infiltration capacity	Improving the soil infiltration capacity means improving the permeability of the soil. If the infiltration capacity of the soil is ...	In most areas where water shortages occur, maximizing the infiltration of rainfall into soil is indispensable to achieving food and ...
Multi-layer safety as a central concept for flood protection	The central concept for the revised water safety policy is formed by 'multi-layer safety'. In this concept safety is assured ...	-
Pond	A pond is a body of standing water, either natural or artificial, that is usually smaller than a lake. They ...	Ponds, apart from assisting in storage rainfall runoff, they are an efficient and cost-effective land drainage system as fewer and ...
Rain garden	A rain garden is a planted depression or a hole that allows rainwater runoff from impervious urban areas, like roofs, ...	Another purpose of a rain garden is to improve water quality in nearby bodies of water. Rain gardens can cut ...	Rain gardens should be designed for specific soils and climates. Native and adapted plants are recommended for rain gardens because ...
Rainwater storage beneath sports fields	One option for creating additional water storage facilities is storing in underground crates. This is a hidden technology that fits ...	Apart from reducing runoff during precipitation and flood events, rainwater storage beneath sports fields enables the multifunctional use of the ...
Swale	A swale is a low tract of land, especially one that is moist or marshy. The term can refer to ...	Vegetation in swales allows for filtering of pollutants, and infiltration of runoff into groundwater. Densely vegetated swales can be designed ...
Wetland and wetland restoration	A wetland (Natural or Constructed/Artificial) is a land area that is saturated with water, either permanently or seasonally, such that ...	Wetlands play a number of roles in the environment, principally water purification, flood control, and shoreline stability. Wetlands are also ...