One of the greatest challenges facing human society, the risk of future flooding, continues to grow due to climate change and increasing population pressures on deltas and floodplains. Adequate monitoring, improved management and the restoration of ecosystems and vegetated foreshores are urgently needed.
Coastal, marine and riverine ecosystems benefit society by delivering ‘ecosystem services’, like carbon storage, support for sustainable fisheries and acting as a protective buffer between the sea and the land. However, marine foreshores are not currently included in water safety assessments and in levee design, and river floodplains are only managed to maximise river discharge capacity.
Further details: Coastline flooding threat assessed from space