The Flood Map for Planning Service includes several layers of information. This includes the Flood Zones data which shows the extent of land at present day risk of flooding from rivers and the sea, ignoring the benefits of defences, for the following scenarios:

• Flood Zone 1 – Land having a less than 0.1% (1 in 1000) annual probability of flooding. • Flood Zone 2 – Land having between 0.1% - 1% (1 in 100 to 1 in 1000) annual probability of flooding from rivers or between 0.1% - 0.5% (1 in 200 to 1 in 1000) annual probability of flooding from the sea, and accepted recorded flood outlines . • Flood Zone 3 – Areas shown to be at a 1% (1 in 100) or greater annual probability of flooding from rivers or 0.5% (1 in 200) or greater annual probability of flooding from the sea.

Flood Zone 1 is not shown in this dataset, but covers all areas not contained within Flood Zones 2 and 3. Local Planning Authorities (LPAs) use the Flood Zones to determine if they must consult the Environment Agency on planning applications. They are also used to determine if development is incompatible and whether development is subject to the exception test. The Flood Zones are one of several flood risk datasets used to determine the need for planning applications to be supported by a Flood Risk Assessment (FRA) and subject to the sequential test.

The Flood Zones are a composite dataset including national and local modelled data, and information from past floods.

The Flood Zones are designed to only give an indication of flood risk to an area of land and are not suitable for showing whether an individual property is at risk of flooding. This is because we cannot know all the details about each property.

Users of these datasets should always check they are suitable for the intended use

The Historic Flood Map is a GIS layer showing the maximum extent of individual Recorded Flood Outlines from river, the sea and groundwater springs that meet a set criteria. It shows areas of land that have previously been subject to flooding in England. This excludes flooding from surface water, except in areas where it is impossible to determine whether the source is fluvial or surface water but the dominant source is fluvial.

The majority of records began in 1946 when predecessor bodies to the Environment Agency started collecting detailed information about flooding incidents, although we hold limited details about flooding incidents prior to this date.

If an area is not covered by the Historic Flood Map it does not mean that the area has never flooded, only that we do not currently have records of flooding in this area that meet the criteria for inclusion. It is also possible that the pattern of flooding in this area has changed and that this area would now flood or not flood under different circumstances. Outlines that don’t meet this criteria are stored in the Recorded Flood Outlines dataset.

The Historic Flood Map takes into account the presence of defences, structures, and other infrastructure where they existed at the time of flooding. It will include flood extents that may have been affected by overtopping, breaches or blockages.

Flooding is shown to the land and does not necessarily indicate that properties were flooded internally.

PLEASE NOTE: This dataset has been retired. It has been superseded by https://environment.data.gov.uk/dataset/04532375-a198-476e-985e-0579a0a11b47. Links to this data will be removed after April 2025. We encourage users to download this Flood Zones dataset if you would like to retain a comparison ability beyond this date.

The Flood Map for Planning (Rivers and Sea) includes several layers of information. This dataset covers Flood Zone 2 and should not be used without Flood Zone 3. It is our best estimate of the areas of land at risk of flooding, when the presence of flood defences are ignored and covers land between Zone 3 and the extent of the flooding from rivers or the sea with a 1 in 1000 (0.1%) chance of flooding each year. This dataset also includes those areas defined in Flood Zone 3.

This dataset is designed to support flood risk assessments in line with Planning Practice Guidance ; and raise awareness of the likelihood of flooding to encourage people living and working in areas prone to flooding to find out more and take appropriate action.

The information provided is largely based on modelled data and is therefore indicative rather than specific. Locations may also be at risk from other sources of flooding, such as high groundwater levels, overland run off from heavy rain, or failure of infrastructure such as sewers and storm drains.

The information indicates the flood risk to areas of land and is not sufficiently detailed to show whether an individual property is at risk of flooding, therefore properties may not always face the same chance of flooding as the areas that surround them. This is because we do not hold details about properties and their floor levels. Information on flood depth, speed or volume of flow is not included.

The Flood Map for Planning Service includes several layers of information. This includes the Flood Zones plus climate change data which shows how the combined extent of Flood Zones 2 and 3 could increase with climate change over the next century, ignoring the benefits of any existing flood defences. We have assumed no changes to flood defences or land-use that could occur in future. The effects of climate change on flood risk we may see in the future could be different to those currently considered.

Flood Zones plus climate change should be used to help planners and developers identify the need for: • a site-specific flood risk assessment • the sequential test.

The dataset can also help to inform the preparation of strategic flood risk assessments.

The Flood Zones plus climate change are a composite dataset including national and local modelled data, and information from past floods.

The Flood Zones plus climate change are designed to only give an indication of flood risk to an area of land and are not suitable for showing whether an individual property is at risk of flooding. This is because we cannot know all the details about each property.

Flood Zones plus climate change uses the following climate change allowances: • ‘Central’ allowance for the 2080s epoch (2070-2125) for risk of flooding from rivers • ‘Upper End’ allowance for risk of flooding from the sea, accounting for cumulative sea level rise to 2125.

Users of these datasets should always check they are suitable for the intended use.

The Flood Map for Planning (Rivers and Sea) includes several layers of information. This layer and documentation covers Flood Zone 2. It is the Environment Agency's best estimate of the areas of land at risk of flooding, when he presence of flood defences are ignored and covers land between Zone 3 and the extent of the flooding from rivers or the sea with a 1 in 1000 (0.1%) chance of flooding each year. This dataset also includes those areas defined in Flood Zone 3.This dataset is designed to support flood risk assessments in line with Planning Practice Guidance ; and raise awareness of the likelihood of flooding to encourage people living and working in areas prone to flooding to find out more and take appropriate action. This dataset is republished by the West of England Combined Authority for supplementing information within our Local Nature Recovery Strategy. If you are using it for statutory purposes, you should refer to the Environment Agency's canonical version, linked in the Attributions field below as this is likely to be more current.

PLEASE NOTE: This dataset has been retired. It has been superseded by https://environment.data.gov.uk/dataset/04532375-a198-476e-985e-0579a0a11b47. Links to this data will be removed after April 2025. We encourage users to download this Flood Zones dataset if you would like to retain a comparison ability beyond this date.

The Flood Map for Planning (Rivers and Sea) includes several layers of information. This dataset covers Flood Zone 3. It is our best estimate of the areas of land at risk of flooding, when the presence of flood defences are ignored and covers land with a 1 in 100 (1%) or greater chance of flooding each year from Rivers; or with a 1 in 200 (0.5%) or greater chance of flooding each year from the Sea.

This dataset is designed to support flood risk assessments in line with Planning Practice Guidance; and raise awareness of the likelihood of flooding to encourage people living and working in areas prone to flooding to find out more and take appropriate action.

The information provided is largely based on modelled data and is therefore indicative rather than specific.

Locations may also be at risk from other sources of flooding, such as high groundwater levels, overland run off from heavy rain, or failure of infrastructure such as sewers and storm drains.

The information indicates the flood risk to areas of land and is not sufficiently detailed to show whether an individual property is at risk of flooding, therefore properties may not always face the same chance of flooding as the areas that surround them. This is because we do not hold details about properties and their floor levels.

Information on flood depth, speed or volume of flow is not included.

PLEASE NOTE: This record has been retired. It has been superseded by: https://environment.data.gov.uk/dataset/b5aaa28d-6eb9-460e-8d6f-43caa71fbe0eThis dataset is not suitable for identifying whether an individual property will flood. This bundle includes the Basic subset of layers from our Risk of Flooding from Surface Water (RoFSW) mapping, previously known as the updated Flood Map for Surface Water (uFMfSW). It is a group of datasets previously available as the uFMfSW Complex Package. The Basic subset includes the following layers: Risk of Flooding from Surface Water Extent: 0.1 percent annual chance Risk of Flooding from Surface Water Extent: 1 percent annual chance Risk of Flooding from Surface Water Extent: 3.3 percent annual chance Risk of Flooding from Surface Water Input Model DetailsRisk of Flooding from Surface Water Suitability

InformationWarnings: Risk of Flooding from Surface Water is not to be used at property level. If the Content is displayed in map form to others we recommend it should not be used with basemapping more detailed than 1:10,000 as the data is open to misinterpretation if used as a more detailed scale. Because of the way they have been produced and the fact that they are indicative, the maps are not appropriate to act as the sole evidence for any specific planning or regulatory decision or assessment of risk in relation to flooding at any scale without further supporting studies or evidence. Some features of this information are based on digital spatial data licensed from the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology © NERC (CEH). Defra, Met Office and DARD Rivers Agency © Crown copyright. © Cranfield University. © James Hutton Institute. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2015. Land & Property Services © Crown copyright and database right.This partner version can be downloaded from environment.data.gov.uk.

PLEASE NOTE: This dataset has now been retired and is superseded by a new dataset called: Reduction in Risk of Flooding from Rivers and Sea due to Defences. The Areas Benefiting from Defences dataset was assessed as no longer sufficiently meeting the needs of our customers and partners and was last updated on 02/11/2022. The Flood Map for Planning (Rivers and Sea) includes several layers of information one of which is areas benefiting from defences. This dataset shows those areas that benefit from the presence of defences in a 1 in 100 (1%) chance of flooding each year from rivers; or 1 in 200 (0.5 %) chance of flooding each year from the sea. If the defences were not there, these areas would flood in a 1 in 100 (1%)/ 1 in 200 (0.5 %) or larger flooding incident. Note that we do not show all areas that benefit from all flood defences. Some defences are designed to protect against a smaller flood with a higher chance of occurring in any year, for example a flood defence which protects against a 1 in 30 chance of flooding in any year. Such a defence may be overtopped in a flood with a 1 in 100 (1%)/ 1 in 200 (0.5%) chance of occurring in any year, but the defence may still reduce the affected area or delay (rather than prevent) a flood, giving people more time to act and therefore reduce the consequences of flooding. We do not always map areas that benefit from defences that offer a lower standard of protection. Other defences are designed to withstand a larger flood with a smaller chance of occurring in any year. In this case, we show only the area that would have been affected in a flood with a 1 in 100 (1%)/ 1 in 200 (0.5%) chance of occurring in any year, even though further areas would benefit in the event of more severe flooding for example in a 1 in 1000 (0.1%) flood. The rivers and sea criteria 1 in 100 (1%)/ 1 in 200 (0.5%) chance of occurring in any year aligns with Flood Zone 3 as described in the Planning Practice Guidance. In mapping areas benefiting from defences, we assume that flood defences and other operating structures act perfectly and give the same level of protection as when our assessment of the area was made. Please download our related dataset Risk of Flooding from Rivers and Sea to understand the flood risk that remains in locations where the location of flood defences and their condition have been included in the modelling. Attribution Statement: © Environment Agency copyright and/or database right 2018. All rights reserved.Some features of this map are based on digital spatial data from the Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, © NERC (CEH) © Crown copyright and database rights 2018 Ordnance Survey 100024198

These maps have been produced to meet SEPA’s duty to publish flood hazard maps as set out in the Flood Risk Management (Scotland) Act 2009. The maps show where there is a risk of flooding from the sea, from rivers and from surface water.The following probabilities are available for river flooding: - High - 10 year return period - Medium - 200 year return period - Low - 1000 year return period and 200 year return period plus climate change using the UKCP09 high emissions scenario for the 2080s.The river hazard maps show (where available): - Flood extent - Flood depth - Flood velocities where appropriate. The climate change scenario has been defined by United Kingdom Climate Projection 2009 (UKCP09) predictions for 2080 high emissions 95%ile predictions. Medium and low probability flood events were selected for consistency with return periods used in Scottish Planning Policy, whereas the high probability was chosen as it is reflective of observed events experienced over the last few decades.

UK Postcode-level Flood Risk Data (Rivers and Sea)

Identifying Risk Areas for Flood Protection and Planning

By IBM Watson AI XPRIZE - Environment [source]

About this dataset

Welcome to the UK Postcode-level Flood Risk Dataset. This open source dataset contains detailed information on flood risk levels by postcode in the UK, allowing you to map out potential problems and plan accordingly. With this dataset, you can assess each postcode's growing risk of floods due to human land use change and climate change-related weather patterns, as well as historical occurrences specific to each area.

We pull data from organizations including Risk of Flooding from Rivers & Sea, Open Postcode Geo, Royal Mail copyright & database right (2017), National Statistics data Crown copyright & database right (2017), and Environment Agency data licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. The associated columns in this dataset are detailed below:

• Postcode - unique identifier for the postal code district where flood risk area is located
• FID - Unique ID for each location point
• PROB 4BAND - Flood risk level for a given postcode determined according to a four tier grade system (High, Medium, Low or Very Low)
• SUITABILITY - Suitability of location based on environment factors assessed according to OFRA criteria
• PUB_DATE - Date when data was published or last updated
• RISK FOR INSURANCE SOP - Standard Operating Procedure assigned according the Probability 4 band Risk rating
• Easting/Northing/Latitude/Longitude – Coordinates associated with a given postcode location

This data can be used by local authorities and agencies conducting flood mapping projects; insurers assessing assets at specified locations using an agreed set of methodology; advisors assessing locations for development purposes; forecasters aiding contingency planning; homeowners/commercial businesses seeking insurance cover for claims arising from flooding events etc. Ultimately we hope citizens around the world use this dataset as an important tool to predict areas exposedto potential flooding risks so that preventive measures may be taken beforehand!

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How to use the dataset

This Kaggle dataset provides postcode-level flood risk data for the UK, including the flood risk level, coordinates, and other related information. This dataset is derived from Risk of Flooding from Rivers and Sea (provided by the British government) and Open Postcode Geo. It is licensed under the OGL 3.0 open government license.

In this data set you will find columns for each postcode as well as unique identifiers for a particular region (FID), an overall four band flood risk level (PROB_4BAND), whether a specific location or building is suitable or not (SUITABILITY), when it was published so you can be sure you are getting reliable up to date information (PUB_DATE), Easting/Northing which roughly measure distance eastwards/northwards of locations in meters(EASTING / NORTHING), LATITUDE & LONGITUDE that point to a precise location on google map & finally RISK_FOR_INSURANCE SOP which clearly distinguishes between sites which should generate warnings with regard to various kinds of insurance policies. This allows companies applying digital transformation solutions like hazard mapping solutions to show what risks certain locations present in relation to possible flood damage using digital technologies such as GIS systems or location intelligence tools etc., allowing organizations apply data science models or techniques like predictive analytics that may be used in decision making processes such as those taken by municipalities when signing off disaster management plans etc..

You can use this dataset for research purposes, share your findings on websites through charts & graphs to develop an educational understanding about possible hazards associated with areas that people inhabit around UK particularly at times when storm systems are localized heavily over specific regions making it most likely due causing major catastrophic event across British Isles . People living there can always access their respective postcodes very easily via our Flood Map by Postcode page here Flood Map.

When writing reports acknowledging source material properly , kindly take into account our acknowledgements including; Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2017, Contains Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and Database right 2017 , Contains National Statistics ...

This dataset is now retired and replaced with the following:

Reservoir Flood Extents - Fluvial Contribution (National) https://environment.data.gov.uk/dataset/db114020-465a-412b-b289-be393d995a75 Reservoir Flood Extents - Wet Day (National) https://environment.data.gov.uk/dataset/d81646cf-37e5-4e71-bbcf-b7d5b9ca3a1c Reservoir Flood Extents - Dry Day (National) https://environment.data.gov.uk/dataset/c66ee97f-49d2-454e-9a19-d48a47bd22ad

This is the simplified version of the outline Reservoir Flood Map Outline (Extent) as shown on the gov.uk Flood Risk website. This is one of 3 available "Risk of Flooding from Reservoirs" Web Mapping Services; Maximum Flood Depth, Maximum Flood Extent, Maximum Flood Speed.

Simplified in this context refers to the fact that unlike the detailed product, individual reservoir flood map extents are not shown separately, and one merged outline shows the maximum flood extent for all reservoir flooding scenarios together.

This is a data layer showing a combined reservoir flood map for 2,092 Large Raised Reservoirs. The data shows the maximum extent of flood should reservoirs be breached, and although the location of each reservoir can be inferred they are not explicitly shown on the maps. The Reservoir Flood Map Maximum Flood Outline (Extent) in its simplified form is referred to externally as Risk of Flooding from Reservoirs – Maximum Flood Extent.

The Reservoir Flood Map Outline (Extent) shows the largest area that might be flooded if a reservoir were to fail and release the water it holds. Since this is a prediction of a credible worst case scenario, it’s unlikely that any actual flood would be this large. These data are intended for emergency planning only and are not reliable for large scale flood risk assessments.

Please note that only flood maps for large reservoirs are displayed. Flood maps are not displayed for smaller reservoirs or for reservoirs commissioned after reservoir mapping began in spring 2009.

Information Warning: The Maximum extent category is available under the standard OGL terms when supplied as a WMS. This excludes the underlying data. Attribution statement: © Environment Agency copyright and/or database right 2019. All rights reserved.

Flood Map for Planning (Rivers and Sea) includes the following datasets:Flood Zone 3Flood Zone 2Flood Storage AreasThe information on the Flood Map for Planning (Rivers and Sea) is designed to only give an indication of flood risk to an area of land and is not sufficiently detailed to show whether an individual property is at risk of flooding.It doesn't show flooding from other sources, such as groundwater, direct runoff from fields, or overflowing sewers.

UK Postcode-Level Flood Risk Data

Risk Level, Suitability, and Geographic Coordinates

By GetTheData [source]

About this dataset

The underlying source material has been compiled from open datasets including 'Risk of Flooding from Rivers and Sea', 'Open Postcode Geo' - all held under licence in agreement with Crown copyright & Database right (2017) & Royal Mail copyright & Database right (2017). The methodology used would combine each one of these datasets points into polygons with first identifying each risk area then mapping out corresponding postcode points within them which then could be tracked for its related longitude, latitude easting and northing positions. Through this comprehensive process you could get a better understanding regarding what individual postcodes are within high & low level flooding areas as well as find out from the latest publication date - when was it last issued? Ultimately this profound dataset comes in handy for prevention or even planning purposes informing citizens how serious some situations could become during extreme weather events such as floods or major storms allowing them to estimate potential risks before disaster ensues!

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How to use the dataset

In order to effectively use this dataset there are several key pieces of terminology that you should be familiar with:

• FID – a unique identifier number associated with each record in the database.
• Postcode – an alphanumeric code used to identify a specific geographic region within the country; consists of two parts: an outward code (e.g., RG4) and an inward code (e.g., 8DN).
• PROB_4BAND – The flood risk level based on four categories represented in this field assigned by location - High, Medium, Low or Very Low; or None if outside of a high-risk area
• SUITABILITY – The suitability rating determined by location; either suitable or not suitable for development based on constraints for building in a floodplain
• Publication Date(PUB DATE) - The date that this information was made publicly available

• Risk For Insurance SOP (Risk_For_Insurance_SOP) - A ranking system from 1-5 used as guidance only when offering advice before taking out insurance cover over certain property located in certain very extreme area

  You will also need to be aware of some mathematical values associated with each postcode:

  • Easting – An eastward grid coordinate reference point corresponding to determining latitude/ longitude coordinates at specified points along an arc created by measuring distances between two other known points

  • Northing– A northward grid coordinate reference forming part of a geographical survey’s grid system

    Finally, here is how you can get started working with this amazing dataset:

    1. Download it onto your computer from Kaggle's website (www.kaggle/datasets/UK Postecode Level Flood Risk Data).

       2

Research Ideas

• Creating a custom application that provides users with real-time flood risk and safety advice based on postcode.
• Developing a map-based interface that integrates flood risk levels directly into Google Maps to assist people in planning trips and relocating in safer areas.
• Developing an app that tracks the geographically accurate position of every property within each postcode, allowing for better risk assessment for businesses and insurers

Acknowledgements

If you use this dataset in your research, please credit the original authors. Data Source

License

See the dataset description for more information.

Columns

File: open_flood_risk_by_postcode.csv | Column name | Description | |:--------------|:--------------------------------| | TR23 0PR | Postcode area (String) | | \N | FID (Integer) | | None | PROB_4BAND (String) | | \N.1 | SUITABILITY (String) | | \N.2 | PULD_DATE (Date) | | \N.3 | RISK_FOR_INSURANCE_SOP (String) | | 87897 | Easting (Integer) | | 15021 | Northing (Integer) | | 49.953605 | Latitude (Float) | | -6.352647 | Longitude (Float) |

Acknowledgements

If you use this dataset in your research, please credit the original authors. If you use this dataset in your research, please credit GetTheData.

The Development Advice Map (DAM) shows areas at risk of flooding from rivers and the sea for the purposes of land-use planning. The DAM supports Planning Policy Wales and Technical Advice Note (TAN) 15 to guide new development away from areas at risk of flooding wherever possible. Together, they form a precautionary framework to guide planning decisions. The DAM should be considered as a trigger for identifying which development proposals may need to undertake a more detailed assessment of flooding risks and consequences in line with the policy advice set out in TAN15.

Zone C (the 1000yr extreme flood outline) was last updated in January 2020. No further updates are planned to the DAM and you are advised to contact Natural Resources Wales (NRW) about the availability of more up-to-date information.

Zone B (areas known to have flooded in the past) was originally published in 2004 and revised in 2017. When using the DAM the preview defaults to Zone B only. You will need to use the legend control to switch on the other zones.

NRW has developed a new Flood Map for Planning (FMfP) which was published in September 2021. This indicates undefended flood extents over the next 100yrs taking into account the impacts of climate change. This will replace the DAM in June 2023. Although the Flood Map for Planning is not referred to in current planning policy, it can be considered as the most up to date information on flooding risks.

Due to technical Issues the Web Services and Map Browser for the Development Advice Map are currently not available. If you wish to browse the data see the NRW Flood Risk Viewer https://maps.cyfoethnaturiolcymru.gov.uk/Html5Viewer/Index.html?configBase=https://maps.cyfoethnaturiolcymru.gov.uk/Geocortex/Essentials/REST/sites/Flood_Risk/viewers/Flood_Risk/virtualdirectory/Resources/Config/Default&layerTheme=2

Recorded Flood Outlines is a GIS layer which shows all our records of historic flooding from rivers, the sea, groundwater and surface water. Each individual Recorded Flood Outline contains a consistent list of information about the recorded flood.

Records began in 1946 when predecessor bodies to the Environment Agency started collecting detailed information about flooding incidents, although we may hold limited details about flooding incidents prior to this date.

The absence of coverage by Recorded Flood Outlines for an area does not mean that the area has never flooded, only that we do not currently have records of flooding in this area.

It is also possible that the pattern of flooding in this area has changed and that this area would now flood or not flood under different circumstances.

The Recorded Flood Outlines take into account the presence of defences, structures, and other infrastructure where they existed at the time of flooding. It includes flood extents that may have been affected by overtopping, breaches or blockages.

Any flood extents shown do not necessarily indicate that properties were flooded internally.

A companion dataset Historic Flood Map contains a subset of these Recorded Flood Outlines which satisfy a certain criteria.

Risk of Flooding from Surface Water (RoFSW) map is an assessment of where surface water flooding may occur when rainwater does not drain away through the normal drainage systems or soak into the ground, but lies on or flows over the ground instead. It is produced using national scale modelling and enhanced with compatible, locally produced modelling from lead local flood authorities (LLFAs). The RoFSW datasets include information about flooding extents, depths, speed and hazards.

This dataset shows information about flooding extents and depths. The depth of water during a flood is an important factor in how dangerous a flood might be.

RoFSW is a probabilistic product, meaning that it shows the overall risk, rather than the risk associated with a specific event or scenario. In externally published versions of this dataset, risk is displayed as one of three likelihood bandings:

High - greater than or equal to 3.3% (1 in 30) chance in any given year; Medium - less than 3.3% (1 in 30) but greater than or equal to 1% (1 in 100) chance in any given year; Low - less than 1% (1 in 100) but greater than or equal to 0.1% (1 in 1000) chance in any given year.

This dataset shows the likelihood of a flood occurring with water at a given depth (or higher). There are separate layers with thresholds for depths of 0m (i.e. flooding extent), 0.2m, 0.3m, 0.6m, 0.9m, and 1.2m.

NB. This is a complex dataset, with preview available only on certain zoom levels. The Web Mapping service has been set to 1:50 000 in the

This dataset contains river (fluvial) and surface water (pluvial) flooding maps for the central highlands of Vietnam and surrounding provinces. Flood depth is estimated at 30m horizontal grid spacing for 10 return periods, ranging from the 1 in 5 year to the 1 in 1000 year return period flood. These maps are of relevance to planners and policy makers to estimate which areas of most at risk of flooding and can contribute towards policy such as the sustainable development goals. Full details about this dataset can be found at https://doi.org/10.5285/74e4e6ec-a119-4dc7-8ada-9513252b1b60

The Waterproofing Data project explored how to build communities’ resilience to flooding, by engaging them in the process of generating the data used to predict when floods will occur. The project team developed a functional citizen-science mobile app prototype and a model school curriculum, which has been successfully co-produced and trialled with more than 300 students from over 20 schools and civil protection agencies of five Brazilian states (Acre, Mato Grosso, Pernambuco, Santa Catarina and Sao Paulo). The app and curriculum enabled the communities involved to democratise flood data, raise awareness of flood risks, and co-design new initiatives to reduce disaster risks to communities.

The project invited participants to co-create a dataset that continuously describes the areas in which flooding impacted their territory. Through this process, the team sought to enhance knowledge about floods among those engaged with the project. This dataset showcases collaborative maps of two flood-prone neighbourhoods in Brazil. The maps were co-created and evaluated with the help of community members and school students living in underserved areas. Data was generated using the SketchMap tool https://sketch-map-tool.heigit.org. The tool supported i) printing paper maps of the neighbourhoods, ii) participants' drawings with the areas they perceived flooding risks, and iii) digitising those areas in a format suitable for cartography. The purpose of this process was to gather input from locals and identify areas that are prone to flooding in the two neighbourhoods. Labels and legends are written in Portuguese. This dataset is complementary data for our publication “Dialogic data innovations for sustainability transformations and flood resilience: The case for waterproofing data” available here https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2023.102730

Waterproofing Data investigates the governance of water-related risks, with a focus on social and cultural aspects of data practices. Typically, data flows up from local levels to scientific "centres of expertise", and then flood-related alerts and interventions flow back down through local governments and into communities. Rethinking how flood-related data is produced, and how it flows, can help build sustainable, flood resilient communities.

To this end, this project develops three innovative methods around data practices, across different sites and scales: 1) we will make visible existing flows of flood-related data through tracing data; 2) generate new types of data at the local level by engaging citizens through the creation of multi-modal interfaces, which sense, collect and communicate flood data, and; 3) integrate citizen-generated data with other data using geo-computational techniques. These methodological interventions will transform how flood-related data is produced and flows, creating new governance arrangements between citizens, governments and flood experts and, ultimately, increased community resilience related to floods in vulnerable communities of Sao Paulo and Acre, Brazil.

The project will be conducted by a highly skilled international team of researchers with multiple disciplinary backgrounds from Brazil, Germany and the UK, in close partnership with researchers, stakeholders and publics of a multi-site case study on flood risk management in Brazil. Furthermore, the methods and results of this case study will be the basis for a transcultural dialogue with government organisations and local administration involved in flood risk management in Germany and the United Kingdom.