Projects

SAWA
Strategic Alliance for integrated Water Management Actions


Summary

SAWA strived to strengthen the member states for their current implementation of the EU Flood Directive by developing a transnational implementation strategy. The aim was to adapt existing water management systems to the effects of extreme flood events due to climate change, focusing on sustainable development of society and regional economies.

Based on case studies and pilot implementations, SAWA tested the new and innovative strategies in Flood Risk Management around the North Sea. The project integrated local, regional and national stakeholders, university and vocational training students.

Duration
01/06/2008 - 31/03/2012
Priority
2 - Promoting the Sustainable Management of our Environment
Area of Intervention
2.3 Adapting to and reducing risks posed to society and nature by a changing climate
ERDF Grant
3,524,000.00 €
ERDF Equivalent
556,000.00 €
Total Eligible Budget
8,160,000.00 €
Lead Beneficiary
Ministry of Economy, Traffic and Innovation (BWVI), Agency for Roads, Bridges and Waters Hamburg (LSBG), Germany
Dagmar Goltermann
dagmar.goltermann@sawa-project.eu
Tel: +49 (0)177 644 38 41
Beneficiaries per Country
Germany
Ministry of Urban Development and Environment, Agency for Roads, Bridges and Water Hamburg (LSBG)
TU Hamburg-Harburg
HafenCity Universität Hamburg (HCU)
LEUPHANA Universität Lüneburg Fakultät Umwelt und Technik Campus Suderburg
Agriculture Chamber of Lower Saxony
The Netherlands
Province of Flevoland
Waterschap Zuiderzeeland ZZL
Waterschap Hunze en Aa’s HEA
Waterschap Noorderzijlvest NZV
Waterboard of Delfland
Norway
Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate
Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU)
Melhus Municipality
Norwegian Meteorological Institute
Sweden
County Administrative Board of Värmland
SMHI (the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute)
County Administrative Board of Västra Götaland
Karlstad University
Swedish Geotechnical Institute
City of Karlstad
United Kingdom
Heriot-Watt University Sustainable Water Management Research Group, School of the Build Environment
Institute for Infrastructure and Environment, School of Engineering and Electronics, The University of Edinburgh
Background and Aim

Aim
The project aimed to adapt existing water management systems to the effects of extreme flood events due to climate change, focusing on sustainable development of society and regional economies.

SAWA built onto the following aims:

  • Improve, facilitate and accelerate the implementation of the new Flood Directive by developing a common planning and implementation strategy based on experience from a number of cases in the North Sea Region
  • Work out a decision strategy on how to use and prioritise new adaptive measures in Flood Risk Management Plans closely coordinated with the EU Water Framework Directive implementation process to show synergetic potentials
  • Develop and compile new adaptive structural and non-structural flood mitigation measures and schemes to improve water management systems in the North Sea Region
  • Prepare institutional, expert and public structures for an optimal implementation and operational capability of the Flood Directive in coordination with Water Framework Directive, focusing on education, communication, capacity building and adaptive measures.

Background
Looking at climate change as a driver for a very likely increase in regional risk of flooding, it will be one of the major challenges for future Flood Risk Management tasks in this century. It is widely believed, that adaptation will be one of the key strategies to cope with this threat. Large parts of the North Sea Region are low lying areas. Hence in many of these areas the risk of fluvial flooding caused by more frequent heavy rainfall is putting pressure onto regional decision makers and stakeholders.

On EU level, water policy has been strengthened by the adopted Flood Directive. It demands an integrated Flood Risk Management on a river basin level with a close link to the EU Water Framework Directive. The implementation bares great challenges for all, especially knowing the differences in legal, institutional and societal conditions in the member states. Both directives demand an integrated water management approach on a river basin level.

How such a management system can be implemented cost-effectively and what kinds of changes to institutional structures, stakeholder involvement, education and communication, etc. are needed, is not clear. Three key areas have been identified where water management can be improved supporting sustainable regional development.

  • How can local decision making be an integral part of catchment based planning applying the concept of Flood Risk Management Plans?
  • How can measures be more locally adaptive without loosing effectiveness on a catchment scale?
  • How must education and communication be improved to optimally integrate stakeholders on all levels?

These challenges required a transnational, interdisciplinary team with partners from all administrative levels (national to local) to assure a practical implementation together with scientific research institutions that were working toward the goals adapting education, management systems and mitigation measures to a changing environment.

  • Centres for education towards sustainable flood risk management around the North Sea
  • Adaptive strategy for implementation of Flood Risk Management Plans in the North Sea Region
  • Decision support database for flood protection measures in the North Sea Region
  • MSc/postgraduate course on flood risk management
  • Cost-benefit analyses of measures in relation to adaptive planning strategies to optimize the implementation of Flood Risk Management Plans and River Basin Management Plans.

SEC "In deep water" - interactive game

SEC “Stan é full av vatten” ( The City is full of water), Mobile Exhibition, SWE

SEC “Stan é full av vatten” ( The City is full of water), Mobile Exhibition, SWE

SEC “Stan é full av vatten” ( The City is full of water), Mobile Exhibition, SWE

SEC Flood animation studio, GER

SEC Flood animation studio, GER

SEC Flood animation studio, GER

Virtual SEC, GER http://wiki.leuphana.de/viwa/wiki/index.php?title=Main_Page

SEC Dike Protection Training Center, GER

SEC Dike Protection Training Center, GER

SEC Climate and Safety at Karlstad University, SWE http://www.kau.se/en/ccs

SEC Leven onder Zea - Mobile Flood Exhibition, NL

SEC Leven onder Zea - Mobile Flood Exhibition

Student Exchange Presentation Hogeschool Rotterdam

Student Exchange Students from Leuphana University presenting student work in Arvika, Sweden.

Student Exchange Student group from Rotterdam visiting Leuphana University in Lüneburg.

Computer based game for pupils - website

Computer based educational game for pupils

Interactive Game, developed by Heriot-Watt University

Educational Game "Floodville" during Researchers night, Sept 2011

Decision making process: Social Game with colored balloons

Master Course Excursion May 2011, Sweden / Norway

Master Course Excursion Germany / Netherlands

Flood walk

Stakeholder involvement

Flood animation studio Klimawoche Kiel

SAWA / Heriot-Watt University Permeable Paving Test Facility

“Runoff early winter” December 17th 2011 at Nils Baysvei 21 in Oslo.

Representative of Waterboard Delfland visited the Green Roof and Raingarden experimental sites in Oslo.

Example 4: LABEL project (Central Europe) and SAWA project (North Sea Region) organized a common conference for exchange of experiences and ideas in June 2011

Example 3: SAWA is represented at EU exhibition in Sweden in Oktober 2010

Example 2: SAWA-member Bent Braskerud in an interview with www.nrk.no close to river Akerselva in Oslo.

Example 1: SAWA project is represented in the daily news (Hamburger Abendblatt)
Events
Flood Risk Management Conference – North Sea Region in Hamburg
Dates: 17/11/2011 - 18/11/2011
SAWA mid-term Conference Göteborg
Dates: 25/05/2010 - 27/05/2010
Documents
SAWA_Project Documentation Summary_Interreg Website
Journal_LABEL-SAWA_joint conference_german_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Proceedings_Final Conference_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Dyke Defence Class_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_3-Weir Control_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Floodville - Interactive Model_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Flood Walk_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Exhibition City full of Water_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Flood Risk Management Plan SWE_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Synergetic Flood Retention Wandse -4_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Synergetic Flood Retention Wandse -3_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Synergetic Flood Retention Wandse -2_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Synergetic Flood Retention Wandse -1_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Preliminary Flood Risk Assessment NOR_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Rain Gardens_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Green Roofs_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Flood Risk Management Plans NOR_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Climate Impacts and FRM_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Flood Risk Management Plan Wandse_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Adaptation Possibilities and Evaluation_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_ Sustainable Flood Retention Basins_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Flood Forecasting_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Integrative River Basin Management_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Measures to Reduce Flood Risk_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_CC and Agriculture_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_SEC - Life Below Sea_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_DSS-Water Level Management_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Poster_Adaptive Flood Risk Management_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Report - SAWA SUMMARY REPORT_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Report - WP 2-2 - Expert Database_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Report - WP 2-1 - AM-Database_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Report - WP1-2 - Climate Change Impacts and Uncertainties_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Report - WP3-2 - Education_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Report - WP3-1 - Capacity Building_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme
Report - WP1-1 - Adaptive Flood Risk Management Planning_SAWA_North Sea Region Programme

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