Worldwide the number of citizens threatened by flooding has increased dramatically, especially for those who live in cities in delta regions.

Urbanisation and climate change will further exacerbate this trend. Up to 140 million people and 30,000 billion euro of assets could be dependent on flood protection in large port cities around the world by 2070.
A large proportion of these flood protection systems are aging and need to be replaced and/or improved to comply with current safety standards, requiring significant investment. 


Due to the growing need for space, there is an increasing urge to effectively use the available room along coasts and rivers. 

The population pressure on coastal areas increases the need for new, well-integrated, multifunctional flood defences in expanding cities. 

In addition to flood protection, multifunctional flood protection infrastructures fulfil societal functions and are a functional part of their urban or rural environment. 
Examples of functions in urban areas include delta-urbanism, real estate, infrastructure and leisure; examples of functions in rural areas include landscape and ecology, infrastructure and recreation.


Innovation & research of integral and sustainable design of multifunctional flood defences

The research programme 'Integral and sustainable design of multifunctional flood defences' consists of several projects in which various aspects of multifunctional flood defences are dealt with. These include technical aspects, safety philosophy, governance, architecture and financial aspects. The (3.4 million euro) research is supported by the Dutch Technology Foundation STW. 

The programme studies how these secondary functions affect the safety against flooding and covers urban planning, governance, and financial aspects in order to bring clear added value to urban areas.
The functions of multifunctional defences are investigated for both urban and rural areas on a regional or local scale.

> Read more about innovation & research


​Our research projects have a variety of subjects regarding multifunctional flood defences in urban and rural landscapes.

In the different research projects in this programme, new principles of risk assessment methods will be developed and technology for multifunctional and flexible flood defences will be integrated into the development of urban and rural landscapes. Furthermore, new governance and asset management principles will be developed for multifunctional flood defences in the design and management phase. New physical and safety knowledge will be integrated into the design of multifunctional flood defences.

> See our research projects

Picture


News
​

Book publication MFFD in Houston Galveston Bay 
Windmills and flood defences
Picture


See Some Examples

Picture


Community
Picture

Talk to us