A cloud based tool for knowledge exchange on local scale flood risk

M.E Wilkinson,E Mackay,P.F Quinn,M Stutter,K.J Beven,C.J.A Macleod,M.G Macklin,Y Elkhatib,B Percy,C Vitolo,P.M Haygarth

doi:10.1016/j.jenvman.2015.06.009

Abstract

There is an emerging and urgent need for new approaches for the management of environmental challenges such as flood hazard in the broad context of sustainability. This requires a new way of working which bridges disciplines and organisations, and that breaks down science-culture boundaries. With this, there is growing recognition that the appropriate involvement of local communities in catchment management decisions can result in multiple benefits. However, new tools are required to connect organisations and communities. The growth of cloud based technologies offers a novel way to facilitate this process of exchange of information in environmental science and management; however, stakeholders need to be engaged with as part of the development process from the beginning rather than being presented with a final product at the end.Here we present the development of a pilot Local Environmental Virtual Observatory Flooding Tool. The aim was to develop a cloud based learning platform for stakeholders, bringing together fragmented data, models and visualisation tools that will enable these stakeholders to make scientifically informed environmental management decisions at the local scale. It has been developed by engaging with different stakeholder groups in three catchment case studies in the UK and a panel of national experts in relevant topic areas. However, these case study catchments are typical of many northern latitude catchments. The tool was designed to communicate flood risk in locally impacted communities whilst engaging with landowners/farmers about the risk of runoff from the farmed landscape. It has been developed iteratively to reflect the needs, interests and capabilities of a wide range of stakeholders. The pilot tool combines cloud based services, local catchment datasets, a hydrological model and bespoke visualisation tools to explore real time hydrometric data and the impact of flood risk caused by future land use changes. The novel aspects of the pilot tool are; the co-evolution of tools on a cloud based platform with stakeholders, policy and scientists; encouraging different science disciplines to work together; a wealth of information that is accessible and understandable to a range of stakeholders; and provides a framework for how to approach the development of such a cloud based tool in the future. Above all, stakeholders saw the tool and the potential of cloud technologies as an effective means to taking a whole systems approach to solving environmental issues. This sense of community ownership is essential in order to facilitate future appropriate and acceptable land use management decisions to be co-developed by local catchment communities. The development processes and the resulting pilot tool could be applied to local catchments globally to facilitate bottom up catchment management approaches.

Highlights

Europe is currently experiencing a relatively flood-rich period with a spate of major floods across the continent over the last decade (Macklin and Rumsby, 2007; Wilby and Keenan, 2012)
Local stakeholder groups are increasingly being asked to participate in decision making alongside policy makers, government agencies and scientists
This will require making all the data available about that place on a shared platform; being able to access a collection of models and choose those that are appropriate to understand the complexities that exist; and, allowing that the information collected by communities of volunteers might be valuable in constraining the virtual view of a place. This sense of place can be useful in engaging local communities with processes in familiar contexts to them (Lane et al 2011). If all of these opportunities can be truly managed and brought together, this is the vision and the possibility of what we see as a great new way of doing hydrology and earth science and is what we describe the start of here e an environmental virtual observatory

Summary

Introduction

Europe is currently experiencing a relatively flood-rich period with a spate of major floods across the continent over the last decade (Macklin and Rumsby, 2007; Wilby and Keenan, 2012). Agricultural land use management is known to have an influence on downstream flood risk in the UK (Burton et al 2003; O'Connell et al 2007; Wilby et al 2008; Hess et al 2010; McIntyre and Marshall, 2010; Wilkinson et al 2013b). As such, addressing issues such as flooding requires new ways of learning about the catchment, by engaging with local communities for better mutual understanding. The communities at risk of flooding, the landowners who manage the land which generate the runoff and the organisations who manage catchments need to be part of the development process from the beginning rather than being presented with a final product at the end

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