This blog post is the result of collaborative work between: Alice Peultier, Daniel Emmauel Nkanziga, Halima Abbas Makame, Joy Baldo, Marie Feuvrier, Mercy Nyamageni, Oliver Charles, Suzan Martin
Climate change and urbanisation pose a rising threat for flooding in urban areas. Nowadays, with more people living in cities than in rural settings, the consequences of this hazard could be disastrous in terms of human safety and sustained economic development. This Blog looks at the flood resilience levels of two cities situated in the global south and in the global north. We find that a common characteristic of both cities is the extensive bottom-up community engagement taking place in order to mitigate and prevent flooding.
Dar es salaam, located in Tanzania, is experiencing rapid economic, political and social growth illustrated by ever expanding urbanization. This new attractiveness has drawn to many new Tanzanians to establish themselves in informal settlements along the flood prone Msimbazi river banks. Climate change increasing the probability of floods and unplanned and unorganized urbanisation leading to blocked drainage systems have caused the destruction of properties, infrastructure as well as the loss of lives. In 2014, three consecutive days of heavily rainfall drainage led to extensive floods throughout the city leading to 19 people dead and 20,000 others displaced from their homes. However, most of the residents are not ready to move to safer areas as they have lived there for generations and are close to the central business district where they can access various services and conduct most of their activities.
To address the cyclonic disaster, multiple initiatives are carried out in Dar es Salaam to reduce flooding risks. These initiatives take place at different levels (city-wide, community and household) and by different actors (public, private, civil society and communities) who present varying capacities and resources. An example can be taken of the Dar ramani huria trains university students and community members to create highly accurate maps of the most prone areas of the city using openstreetmap. The communities map residential areas, roads, streams, floodplains and other relevant features in order to gain and communicate valuable information to the local population. The project improves awareness of flood risks and increases flood prevention and risk reduction measures at the local level. Another interesting community initiative is the Zuia Mafuriko project which establishes local disaster preparedness and response teams who lead the prioritization of food resilience in coordination with municipal authorities.
In the United Kingdom one out of six properties are at risk of flooding, with forty-five percent of those living in flood risk areas being oblivious to the risks. London is situated in a particularly high flood risk zone with 420,000 properties being at risk from Thames Tidal flooding. Beyond 2030, the Thames Barrier and associated defences, will have to be upgraded at a currently estimated cost of £4bn. However the main area of uncertainty is how climate change will affect the frequency and intensity of storms and rainfall over London. Flooding from the Thames tributaries and from sewers and drains are also a point of concern as they are in part forgotten in systemic risk assessment and warning policies.
More specific to our case study, the borough of Purley is declared a high risk zone with the main reasons for flooding being blocked drains, river Bourne and water run offs. Following the 2012 floods, the Environmental Agency, local councils, Thames Water and Greater London Authority launched a community flood plan with the aim to engage communities in preparing them for flooding and reducing its impacts. While highly transient communities and limited resources made the process challenging in terms of communicating and engaging with the public, the pilot community flood plan is overcoming initial challenges by focusing on empowering communities.
The Purley and Woodcote Residents Association (PWRA) in cooperation with the Purley Business Association, were given the responsibility to develop their own community flood plan. The partners mentioned above (Environmental Agency etc…) provided advice and a budget in order to deliver the plan. The communities came up with two solutions. A visually appealing leaflet was distributed to help locals understand their level of flood risk and provide practical advice. A plan was created as an in-depth guide for the Community Flood Plan Purley (CFPP) members and wardens on what they have to do before, during and after the flood.
The empowerment of the community enabled greater discussion and proactive involvement allowing local populations to take ownership of the problem while building large networks. These networks represent the involvement of different organisations with interconnected interests enabling the possibility to generate multiple benefits through local flood risk management.
In both case studies, community engagement is an essential factor in raising awareness and communicating flood risks to the local population. Furthermore, a bottom-up approach can be more effective in preventing catastrophic floods consequences as in certain situations the population possesses local knowledge essential to effective prevention of risks.
Many thanks to Professor Aldo Lupala, Ardhi University, Dr Nancy Holman (LSE), the Project Assistants (Robinson Kisyombe and Dr Meredith Whitten), and to all the URP students and GY446 students who shared their knowledges and skills. Special thanks to the LSE’s EDEN Centre for funding the Project.
