The CT BETA will coordinate LocAll4Flood, a project on managing the response to flash floods in the Mediterranean

The launch meeting of LocAll4Flood, a new European project funded by the Interreg Euro-Med programme and coordinated by the BETA Technological Center at UVic-UCC took place online this week. The consortium, made up of institutions in Greece, Italy, Bulgaria, Malta, Catalonia and the Balearic Islands, will work to create a new integrated model of governance designed for a more effective management of the problem of flash floods in the region. 

Flooding, and flash floods caused by heavy rainfall in particular, is a major hazard in the Mediterranean region, especially in the smaller river basins and on the islands. Climate change is exacerbating these risks and increasing the need to work to increase resilience based on the adoption of measures for prevention, adaptation and mitigation. Some of these measures will be based on nature-based solutions, one of the knowledge areas that CT BETA has been working on in recent years. 

The new LocAll4Flood governance model will be created from an integrated bottom-up perspective, and endeavour to involve as many stakeholders as possible in improving the management of this type of risk. After it has been designed, it will be tested in nine pilot territories in six regions that are vulnerable to the problem. 

The definition of this project is largely a consequence of a previous project funded by the Euroregion Water call, which identified integrated sustainable solutions for improving the response capacity of public administrations and citizens to flash floods.