Mitigation of Flood Risks with the Aid of the Critical Points Method

Abstract

Concentrated surface run-off caused by torrential rain leads to the transport of sediments from soil erosion processes within catchment areas of critical points, which represents a basic component of flood risks. Clear identification of such critical points offers a basis for a suitable new strategy of threat mitigation, via both organizational and structural measures in catchment areas. Critical points are determined in places where generated paths of concentrated surface run-off cross given boundaries of built-up areas. The threshold values for the catchment area of a critical point were derived on the basis of hydrological calculations, field research, and the evaluation of hundreds of specific manifestations of damage in built-up areas for particular critical profiles. The characteristics were determined as follows: contributing area between 0.3 and 10 km2, average slope more than 3.5%, and percentage of arable land more than 40%. Indicator F was determined for the distribution of the territory of the Czech Republic according to the risk of flooding. Knowledge of the existence of critical points enables the implementation of preventive measures, the evaluation of flood risk associated with the transport of sediment due to erosion processes, and the improvement of management measures in respective catchment areas, even before an event occurs. The proposed procedure outputs shall be reflected in spatial planning documentation, land consolidation, and catchment area management plans. Incorporation of critical points into open-access public web-maps can help with assessing the semi-quantitative expression of risk to built-up areas arising from the threat of local flooding.

Keywords

• concentrated surface run-off
• mitigation of flood risks
• transport of sediments
• soil degradation
• water erosion
• water retention