EGU2020-19685
https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-19685
EGU General Assembly 2020
© Author(s) 2020. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.

Do hazard maps mirror loss data? – A vulnerability assessment based on loss data and hazard maps

Mirjam Mertin1,2, Mattia Brughelli1,2, Andreas Zischg1,2, Veronika Röthlisberger1,2, Matthias Schlögl3, and Margreth Keiler1,2
Mirjam Mertin et al.
  • 1University of Bern, Institute of Geography, Bern, Switzerland (mirjam.mertin@giub.unibe.ch)
  • 2University of Bern, Oeschger Centre for Climate Change Research, Mobiliar Lab of Natural Risks, Bern, Switzerland
  • 3University of Natural Ressources and Life Sciences, Institute of Mountain Risk Engineering, Vienna, Austria

Implementing effective flood risk strategies is an essential task for policy-makers which will gain in importance as flood losses are expected to increase due to socio-economic and climatic drivers in near future. Flood risk mitigation incorporates structural and non-structural measures such as the declaration of flood hazard zones, both of which are associated with high financial expenses. Essential information to ensure maximum effectiveness and cost efficiency of flood protection measures is provided by quantitative flood loss analyses based, for example, on data from insurance claims.

This project aims to model the expected flood damage, thus the vulnerability to buildings by examining country-wide, empirical flood loss data of Switzerland of the past 35 years. The developed method includes several steps: First, the loss data are statistically analysed, second the spatial distribution of the loss data in the different hazard zones is assessed and third, vulnerability models for each hazard zone are developed including further parameters such as building values or building zones. A further objective is to provide an overview of possible methods which differ in complexity and data requirement and can be adapted for other applications outside of Switzerland. First results show that the extent of loss increases as the degree of hazard rises. In contrast, however, the number of damage events is highest in flood zones with a lower degree of hazard. Further possibilities how risk adaptation strategies can be supported or complemented by flood loss data are presented within this project.

How to cite: Mertin, M., Brughelli, M., Zischg, A., Röthlisberger, V., Schlögl, M., and Keiler, M.: Do hazard maps mirror loss data? – A vulnerability assessment based on loss data and hazard maps, EGU General Assembly 2020, Online, 4–8 May 2020, EGU2020-19685, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-egu2020-19685, 2020

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