During the first half of September many areas around the world have been hit by heavy rains and devastating floods – in Myanmar, Nigeria, Central Europe and elsewhere.

Governments and various communities are trying to adapt and cope with these extreme weather events, investing in green initiatives and investing in infrastructure that could prevent the worst effects of increasingly frequent and larger floods.

Venice, a new Atlantis?

Venice is faced with a double existential crisis: sea levels are rising due to climate change, while the city is gradually sinking deeper into its muddy foundations.

The city is estimated to have been sinking for 150 years at an average of 2.5 millimeters per year. According to some research Venice could be completely submerged by the middle of the next century – a modern Atlantis.

The most immediate challenge however is flooding. Planning for the city’s flood defense systems began as early as 1980, while in 2003 construction of the MOSE system began. MOSE has four movable barriers, each consisting of a series of gates that can be raised and separate the lagoon from the rest of the ocean at high tide.

The special dams of the USA and Japan

Dams are usually used on rivers, with the aim of creating a water reservoir.

But there is also a type of dam that is designed to allow water to flow under normal conditions. These dams are not used to collect water in dry periods, but to deal with extreme weather events. In the event of a flood, these dams close and thus store the excess water, protecting the areas on the other side of the structure. When the rainfall and flood have receded, the water is released back into the river.

Such dams have been built in Ohio, USA, and in Japan.

Houses with… stilts and lifting mechanisms

Stilts have been used in houses for a long time, as supports that can protect the building in the event of a flood.

Although houses on stilts are common in small island countries where sea levels are rising very quickly, more and more states are now turning to this method.

In the USA there is a special regulatory framework, which provides that the stilts must be stable enough to withstand floods or strong winds, but also raise the respective house enough so that it does not fill with water in case of extreme flooding.

And in the United Kingdom, the company FloodJack has developed a similar, special system: it is a mechanism that can detect the rise of water, in which case it activates a lifting system to protect the house.

Other countries still impose restrictions on where houses can be built. And such laws are an increasingly popular option for effectively protecting citizens from flooding.

A Dutch innovation that reached Africa

Some time ago a Dutch company called SLAMDAM thought of dealing with the rise of water in cases of flooding by building temporary dams. This particular idea proved to be very treacherous in the Netherlands – and today it is also applied in many African countries, such as Nigeria and Kenya.

These Dutch dams consist of inflatable tubes, which are filled with water and create a temporary wall, a barrier capable of holding back the flood waters. In some areas the water stored in the dam was then used in dry periods for irrigation.

Reducing flooding in ‘natural ways’

However, floods are not necessarily limited only by technological innovations. Several areas are making targeted environmental interventions, which are often called “nature-based solutions” and may involve managing water flow in rivers or floodplains, or restoring agricultural areas with native vegetation so that stormwater is more retained. effectively.

Such initiatives are considered “green infrastructure” and are being implemented across the globe.

Edited by: Giorgos Passas