The effect of wildfires on flood risk: a multi-hazard flood risk approach for the Ebro River basin, Spain

Abstract

Climate change increases the risk of wildfires and floods in the Mediterranean region. Yet, wildfire hazards are often overlooked in flood risk assessments and treated in isolation, despite their potential to amplify floods. Indeed, by altering the hydrological response of burnt areas, wildfires can lead to increased runoff and amplifying effects. This study aims to comprehensively assess flood risk using a multi-hazard approach, considering the effect of wildfires on flood risk, and integrating diverse socio-economic indicators with hydrological properties. More specifically, this study investigates current and future flood risks in the Ebro River basin in Spain for the year 2100 under the Shared Socioeconomic Pathway 1-2.6 (SSP1-2.6) and SSP5-8.5 scenarios, taking into account projected socio-economic conditions and the effect of wildfires. An analytical hierarchy process (AHP) approach is employed to assign weights to various indicators and components of flood risk based on insights gathered from interviews with seven experts specializing in natural hazards. Results show that the influence of wildfires on the baseline flood risk is not apparent. Under the SSP1-2.6 scenario, regions with high flood risk are expected to experience a slight risk reduction, regardless of the presence of wildfires, due to expected substantial development in adaptive capacity. The highest flood risk, almost double compared to the baseline, is projected to occur in the SSP5-8.5 scenario, especially when considering the effect of wildfires. Therefore, this study highlights the importance of adopting a multi-hazard risk management approach, as reliance solely on single-risk analyses may lead to underestimating the compound and cascading effects of multi-hazards.