Water on the Land - Engineering Strategies

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  • Created by: 12BE
  • Created on: 18-05-17 15:19
Name 3 hard engineering strategies
Dams and reservoirs, flood banks and channel straightening
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Name 6 soft engineering strategies
Flood warnings, preparation, flood plain zoning, nothing, flood abatement and washlands
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What is channel straightening?
Cutting artificial channels to straighten the river and remove meanders
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What are flood banks?
Soil, dirt or concrete walls next to the river to raise the height of the banks
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What are dams and reservoirs?
Dams are huge walls built across rivers, usually in the upper course, reservoirs are formed behind dams
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What are flood warnings?
The environment Agency warning people about flooding through TV, radio, newspapers and the internet
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What is preparation?
Buildings are modified to reduce the amount of damage a flood could cause and people make plans
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What is flood plain zoning?
Restrictions are placed on what land can be used for depending on the distance from the river
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What is nothing?
No money is spent on engineering methods or maintaining defenses as flooding is a natural process
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What is flood abatement?
Changing the land use up stream by planting trees
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What are washlands?
Parts of the floodplain that are allowed to flood
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What are the benefits of channel straightening?
Water moves out of the area quicker as it doesn't have to travel as far
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What are the disadvantages of channel straightening?
Dredging needs to be done every year, it is expensive and it increases the risk of flooding further downstream
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What are the benefits of flood banks?
They increase river discharge so flooding is less likely and it is a small one-off cost
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What are the problems with flood banks?
It looks unnatural and increases flooding risk downstream
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What are the benefits of dams and reservoirs?
They reduce flood risks and can be used for water demand and for hydroelectric power. It can also create new habitats and recreational activites
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What are the disadvantages of dams and reservoirs?
It is very expensive, can trap sediment and destroys habitats and settlements when first built
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What are the advantages of flood warnings?
They can produce flood maps and impacts are reduced as people are prepared
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What are the disadvantages of flood warnings?
They do nothing to prevent the flood, can make insurance difficult and some people don't see them
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What are the benefits of preparation?
Building are damaged less and people are prepared and know what to do in a flood
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What are the disadvantages of preparation?
It is expensive to modify homes so they are flood proof and it doesn't guarantee safety so some people get a false sense of security
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What are the benefits of flood plain zoning?
The flood risk is lowered and the impact is lessened as there aren't any roads or homes to be damaged
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What are the problems with flood plain zoning?
It doesn't work on current settlements and it limits urban expansion if there are no other suitable areas
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What are the advantages of doing nothing?
The eroded material is deposited on the flood plain, making the farmland more fertile
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What are the disadvantages of doing nothing?
The risk and impactsa of flooding aren't reduced so a flood would cause a lot of damage
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What are the benefits of flood abatement?
It slows down the flow of rainwater into rivers by acting as natural barriers and increasing interception and transpiration
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What are the problems with flood abatement?
There is not always the space up stream to plant trees
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What are the advantages of washlands?
They allow the river to flood naturally but there can still be a nature reserve or football pitch
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What are the disadvantages of washlands?
It reduces the areas we can build on and may still affect some areas of a settlement
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Other cards in this set

Card 2

Front

Name 6 soft engineering strategies

Back

Flood warnings, preparation, flood plain zoning, nothing, flood abatement and washlands

Card 3

Front

What is channel straightening?

Back

Preview of the front of card 3

Card 4

Front

What are flood banks?

Back

Preview of the front of card 4

Card 5

Front

What are dams and reservoirs?

Back

Preview of the front of card 5
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