Performance and reliability of flood & coastal defence structures - phase 1

A study exploring ways to assess the performance and reliability of flood and coastal defences to make better assessments of risk.

Documents

Performance and reliability of flood and coastal defences - final report (58KB) PDF

Performance and reliability of flood and coastal defences - project record (321KB) PDF

Performance and reliability of flood and coastal defences phase 1 - summary (62KB) PDF

Performance and reliability of flood and coastal defences phase 1 - technical report 1 (7.2MB) PDF

Performance and reliability of flood and coastal defences phase 1 - technical report 2 (1.2MB) PDF

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Details

A key factor in assessing flood and erosion risk is understanding how reliable defence structures are. Risk is a combination of probability and consequences. Structures with a high probability of failure tend to result in a high risk.

This project explored ways to assess the performance and reliability of flood and coastal defences to make better assessments of risk. It directly supports Defra and Environment Agency policies, strategies and new decision-making tools for flood and coastal erosion risk management (FCERM). It provided:

  • information to assess how effective flood defences are in reducing risk
  • information to support decisions about how to manage the performance of flood defences
  • methods to assess the risk of flood and erosion - including how defences perform under extreme pressure

The reports describe the concept of fragility curves, how they are used in managing risk, and the scientific and practical basis for them. They’re intended to support those involved with managing flood and coastal defences and assessing risks associated with flood defence structures and systems.

This project ran from 2003 to 2005 at a cost of £118,718.

Published 17 February 2021