Disaster Risk Reduction Strategies in EU Coastal Areas

Publication: Policy Brief
Citation: Benjamin Boteler, Ap van Dongeren, Zoran Vojinovic et al. 2014: Disaster Risk Reduction Strategies in EU Coastal Areas (Policy Brief). RISC-KIT/PEARL.

Coastal storms, sea level rise and floods have caused and will continue to cause significant impacts across Europe and endanger the security of people and their livelihoods. Due to population and economic growth and the increased likelihood of hazards due to climate change, risks are expected to increase in the near future. RISC-KIT and PEARL are developing methods, tools and management approaches to reduce risk and increase the resilience of Europe’s coastal zones.

A policy brief published in October 2014 identified key messages for EU decision makers to improve Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) strategies. The policy brief, co-authored by Ecologic Institute’s Benjamin Boteler, Grit Martinez, Nico Stelijes and Katrina Abhold, is the result of an international case study review, combining stakeholder interviews and analysis of national, regional and local policies. The policy brief is a product of the EU FP7 projects, RISC-KIT (Resilience-Increasing Strategies for Coasts-Toolkit) and PEARL (Preparing for Extreme and Rare events in coastaL regions).

The analysis found that implementation of national DRR strategies at local levels varies due to a variety of physical, socio-political and cultural factors. Key messages for European policy makers include:

Climate-induced coastal storms and on-going coastal development necessitate a re-assessment of Disaster Risk Reduction strategies. Strategies which depend on preparedness and some risk mitigation measures will need to adopt more mitigation or preventive measures.
Both technical and ecosystem-based solutions are feasible options to build long-term Disaster Risk Reduction strategies. Ecosystem-based solutions can support win-win solutions, although to date their implementation is limited due to a disconnection between disaster risk management, adaptation, and nature conservation goals.
Targeting local values and adapting national Disaster Risk Reduction strategies to local historical and socio-cultural characteristics and priorities through multi-level communication and stakeholder inclusion can lead to greater adoption and more effective implementation of policies.
The European Union is in a unique position to support and coordinate Member State efforts to develop DRR strategies, as well as support collaboration on the development and sharing of knowledge, standards and cost-effective tools.

The policy brief also highlights existing EU policies which provide the foundation for enhanced DRR management, and the prospects to reassess European DRR strategies through reformulation of the UN Hyogo Framework for Action goals in 2015. The policy brief [pdf, 0.4 MB, English] is available for download.

The EU is in a unique position to support and coordinate Member State efforts to develop Disaster Risk Reduction strategies.

The Proof of the Pudding is in the Eating?!

7 - 9 June 2023
Dr. Grit Martinez

Publication:Article

This paper deals with how culture is expressed through the interplay of socially, politically, and economically driven processes and practices in place-based biophysical contexts as well as the role played by narrative expressions in the formation of coastal risk management, knowledge and action. It draws upon ethnographic, comparative, and historical approaches to understand how culture frames what we know and how we respond differently to risks.

Coastal Risk Cultures

Local and Regional Formation of Knowledge and Action

Year 2021

Publication:Book

There is a growing impetus among policy makers and practitioners to support and empower capacities of communities under changing climatic conditions. Despite this there is little systematic understanding of why approaches work at local levels or not and what makes some communities resilient and others less so. Authors addressing this shortcoming by providing illustrative case studies and assessment tools from Europe’s North, East and South helping to bridge the gap between climate change policies, decision-making and the cultural traits of communities in Europe.

Culture and Climate Resilience: Perspectives from Europe

Year 2021

Publication:Report

Introduction to the RISC-KIT Web Based Management Guide for DRR in European Coastal Zones

Year 2017

Publication:Article

The article illustrates both the potential and challenges of interdisciplinary collaboration amongst researchers from the social sciences/humanities and the natural sciences/engineering in formulating disaster risk reduction measures for coastal regions. The authors, among them Ecologic Institute's Grit Martinez, share their experiences of working across different scientific and engineering disciplines in the EU project RISC-KIT to co-produce disaster risk reduction measures suitable for specific regional and local contexts, in this case two coastal study areas in Europe (Porto Garibaldi, Italy and Rio Formosa, Portugal). The article is available for download.

Experiences and Results from Interdisciplinary Collaboration

Utilizing Qualitative Information to Formulate Disaster Risk Reduction Measures for Coastal Regions

Year 2018

Publication:Article

This study presents information about the storms in 1872 and 1904 that occurred along the coast of Scania that is analysed with respect to the evolution of risk awareness, vulnerability, and societies' resilience over time. The article, to which Dr. Grit Martinez from Ecologic Institute contributed, is available for download.

The Role of Historical Storm Events in Risk Analysis

A study of the coastal flood events in 1872 and 1904 along the South and East Coast of Scania, Sweden, Vatten.

Year 2017

Publication:Report

This Synthesis Report provides an overview of the achievements, lessons learned and challenges identified through the RISC-KIT project activities, including the development and application of the tools at ten case study sites in a range of coastal regions across Europe. The lessons learned are then fed into a series of recommendations for improved DRR for Europe and beyond. The resulting insights and accompanying recommendations have been considered in relation to their relevance to EU and international processes that both directly and indirectly address coastal DRR. The RISC-KIT Synthesis Report is available for download.

RISC-KIT Synthesis Report

Year 2017

Publication:Policy Brief

Europe's coastlines are a product of human cultivation. Since settling on the coast, humans have engineered the coastal characteristics to suit the purposes of states, the economy and human recreation. At the time of the Treaties of Rome, Europe had just emerged from the devastating aftermath of the Second World War with a 'great hunger' for a liberal life style, leisure activities and travel. The diverse and scenic views of Europe's coasts offered the ideal destination for such endeavors. Soon, a rapid coastal urbanization coupled with a steady increase in mass tourism emerged. Spurred by the trust in technical and engineering capacities, new bold attitudes about building and living on the sea often interfered with the natural sediment transport of coastal systems, leading to erosion. Today, more than 42% of Europeans live in coastal regions with coastal infrastructure worth about 959 billion EURO. Recent and historic high-impact storm events have demonstrated that weather events pose a significant risk and can immobilize cities and countries. The FP7 project, Resilience-Increasing Strategies for Coasts – toolKIT (RISC-KIT), recently issued a policy brief to communicate lessons learned and to support the dissemination of tools, which coastal managers to improve coastal resilience in Europe and elsewhere.

Disaster Risk Reduction Strategies in EU Coastal Areas

Recommendation for EU, National, and Regional Policy Makers

Year 2017

Publication:Report

The RISC-KIT Web-based Management Guide is one of the five RISC-KIT tools designed to highlight key principles recommended for the planning of local DRR measures using examples from the case studies and elsewhere to provide practical illustrations. It is intended to give guidance to coastal managers in Europe and those facing similar challenges beyond the region as well as other groups concerned with coastal management (i.e. coastal resource users, technical and scientific experts and policy makers). The guide includes prevention, mitigation, protection and preparedness measures with recommendations for their use in various socio-economic, cultural and environmental settings. The RISC-KIT Web-based Management Guide is available for download.

Web-based Management Guide

Year 2017

Language: English
Authorship: Benjamin Boteler

Dr. Grit Martinez

Dr. Nico Stelljes

Katrina Abhold

Ap von Dongeren RISC-KIT Project Coordinator (Deltares)

Zoran Vojinovic PEARL Project Coordinator (UNESCO-IHE)
Year: 2014
Dimension: 8 pp.
Project: Resilience-Increasing Strategies for Coasts – toolKIT (RISC-KIT)
Project ID: 2729
Keywords: Adaptation

Climate

Coastal + Marine

EU

Governance

adaptation, disaster risk reduction, coastal storms, climate change, sustainability, stakeholder engagement, policy integration, governance, environmental governance

Further Links

ProjectFP 7Resilience-Increasing Strategies for Coasts – toolKIT (RISC-KIT)

Climate change is leading to increased vulnerability of coastal areas as coastal storms, sea level rise and flooding cause significant impacts across Europe. Resilience-Increasing Strategies for Coasts – toolKIT (RISC-KIT) is a four-year European research project aimed... Read more

Resilience-Increasing Strategies for Coasts – toolKIT (RISC-KIT)

Duration: Nov 2013 - Apr 2017
Funding: European Commission, Directorate-General Research & Innovation (DG Research & Innovation), International

Website: PEARL

The policy brief is available through the RISC-KIT website.