The risk of the Seine flooding the Ile de France region is a major one. In 2014, the OECD estimated that flooding comparable to the historic 1910 flood could affect up to 5 million citizens and cause damage costing up to 30 billion euros. This update tracks the progress made since 2014 and ...
The Toolkit for Water Policies and Governance compiles policies, governance arrangements and related tools that facilitate the design and implementation of water management practices in line with the OECD Council Recommendation on Water.
This study examines flood risk prevention of the Seine in the Ile-de-France region. It highlights the impacts a major flood, like the one in 1910, could have on the well-being of citizens, city management and the economy.
One of government's key responsibilities is to ensure that large metropolitan areas are resilient to major risks, so as to guarantee the safety and welfare of the public and maintain public confidence. In the light of the Great East Japan Earthquake or the flooding associated with Hurricane Sandy in New York, governments, local authorities and civil society have become increasingly aware of the fragility of major urban centres when faced with a disaster and of the degree to which critical systems are interconnected. Within the framework of global debate on climate change, it is important to question the capacity of cities to adapt to extreme events. Flooding in the region of ãle-de-France onthe scale seen during the historic flood of 1910 could constitute a major shock and pose an unprecedented challenge to public policy. The Greater Paris project provides a unique opportunity to promote good practices in resilience to encourage sustainable development.
After 30 years without any serious flooding, and over half a century without any major floods (the river Seine's last "important" flooding in Paris took place in January 1955), the 2016 event questions our capacity to evaluate the flood hazard and its impacts. For the Ile-de-France region, the hazard occurred outside defined periods of vigilance, as a result of heavy rains downstream of the main protection structures formed by reservoirs. For this reason, these large protection works only had a very moderate influence on the event. Management of the 2016 event has been analysed on the basis of local measures whose effectiveness varied depending on the context. Among the positive lessons to be drawn, the 2016 floods revealed the high level of resilience of the Matra district in Romorantin. This resilient district, which has high urban qualities, has shown that, in the French regulatory context, flood risks can be treated effectively by appropriate development projects.
This open access book reviews the water-agro-food and socio-eco-system of the Seine River basin (76,000 km2), and offers a historical perspective on the river’s long-term contamination. The Seine basin is inhabited by circa 17 million people and is impacted by intensive agricultural practices and industrial activities. These pressures have gradually affected its hydrological, chemical and ecological functioning, leading to a maximum chemical degradation between the 1960s and the 1990s. Over the last three decades, while major water-quality improvements have been observed, new issues (e.g. endocrine disruptors, microplastics) have also emerged. The state of the Seine River network, from the headwaters to estuary, is increasingly controlled by the balance between pressures and social responses. This socio-ecosystem provides a unique example of the functioning of a territory under heavy anthropogenic pressure during the Anthropocene era. The achievements made were possible due to the long-term PIREN Seine research program, established in 1989 and today part of the French socio-ecological research network “Zones Ateliers”, itself part of the international Long-term Socio-economic and Ecological Research Network (LTSER). Written by experts in the field, the book provides an introduction to the water budget and the territorial metabolism of the Seine basin, and studies the trajectories and impact of various pollutants in the Seine River. It offers insights into the ecological functioning, the integration of agricultural practices, the analysis of aquatic organic matter, and the evolution of fish assemblages in the Seine basin, and also presents research perspectives and approaches to improve the water quality of the Seine River. Given its scope, it will appeal to environmental managers, scientists and policymakers interested in the long-term contamination of the Seine River.
The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is the leading international body for assessing the science related to climate change. It provides policymakers with regular assessments of the scientific basis of human-induced climate change, its impacts and future risks, and options for adaptation and mitigation. This IPCC Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere in a Changing Climate is the most comprehensive and up-to-date assessment of the observed and projected changes to the ocean and cryosphere and their associated impacts and risks, with a focus on resilience, risk management response options, and adaptation measures, considering both their potential and limitations. It brings together knowledge on physical and biogeochemical changes, the interplay with ecosystem changes, and the implications for human communities. It serves policymakers, decision makers, stakeholders, and all interested parties with unbiased, up-to-date, policy-relevant information. This title is also available as Open Access on Cambridge Core.
"This book is the outcome of the International Conference 'Water, Megacities and Global Change', and represents the collective work of 33 authors and co-authors. It contains summaries of monographs on 15 emblematic megacities: Beijing, Buenos Aires, Chicago, Ho Chi Minh City, Istanbul, Lagos, London, Los Angeles, Manila Mexico, Mumbai, New York, Paris, Seoul and Tokyo. This edition provides unique information about water management in these megacities."--Final page of pdf.
