Resilient catchments and hydrological extremes

Our research is improving scientific understanding about how water moves through the natural and built environment.

We use this knowledge to predict changes in hydrological extremes due to climate and land use change, and design effective solutions to mitigate risks to society from floods and droughts.

Our current key areas of research include:

• 

  Hydroclimate extremes

  Hydroclimatic extremes, such as very intense precipitation and drought, are expected to increase with global warming, with their cumulative effects potentially posing severe threats for human and natural systems. Researchers in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences are looking at how changes in the climate effect the water system and how water management can help alleviate extremes like floods and drought. Read more about our hydroclimate extremes research

• 

  Hydrocitizenship

  Understanding how communities live and engage with the environment is key to tackling natural hazards such as flooding and drought along with promoting sustainable management of water resources. Researchers in the School of Arts, Language and Culture have explore how the arts can be used to engage local communities and water sector professional to better understand water issues and enhance the potential for practical action.

  Much of this work was carried out as part of the AHRC funded Towards hydrocitizenship project and you can watch a talk by Stephen Scott-Bottoms where he talks about his research.

• 

  Natural flood management

  Flooding is a natural process but it can have devastating consequences for people and property. With climate change science predicting an increase in occurrence and severity of high rainfall events, we need to change the way we think about managing flood risk. Researchers are developing methods for natural flood management through upland land management and quantifying its benefits. Much of this work was done as part of the NERC funded ProtectNFM which is part of the wider NERC Understanding the effectiveness of natural flood management programme.

  Watch a talk by Professor Tim Allott discussing his work in this area.

• 

  Sustainable urban drainage

  68% of the world population are projected to live in urban areas by 2050 and, as a result, cities are coming under increased environmental stresses such as flooding. We are project partners of Grow Green which is an EU project to create climate and water resilient, healthy and liveable cities by investing in nature-based solutions.

  How to manage water drainage is a key challenge for cities around the world. Researchers in the Department of Mechanical, Aerospace and Civil Engineering are exploring how blue-green infrastructure can be incorporated into urban planning to reduce flood risks and water pollution while providing amenity and biodiversity benefits to local populations