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Economic evaluation of structural and non-structural flood risk management measures: examples from the Mulde River

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  • Volker Meyer
  • Sally Priest
  • Christian Kuhlicke

Abstract

The concept of flood risk management, promoted by the EU Floods Directive, tries to mitigate flood risks not only by structural, hydraulic engineering measures, but also by non-structural measures, like, e.g., land-use planning, warning and evacuation systems. However, few methods currently exist for the economic evaluation of such non-structural measures and, hence, their comparison with structural measures. The objective of this paper is to demonstrate the potential benefits of employing a wider range of economic appraisal methods for flood projects, in particular, it provides examples and applications of methodologies which may be employed to evaluate non-structural measures and their transaction costs. In two case studies at the Mulde River, Germany, two non-structural measures, a resettlement option and a warning system, are evaluated and compared with structural alternatives with regard to their effectiveness, cost-effectiveness and efficiency. Furthermore, a simple approach is tested in order to show the transaction costs of these measures. Case study results show that the choice of evaluation criteria can have a major impact on the assessment results. In this regard, efficiency as an evaluation criterion can be considered as superior to cost-effectiveness and effectiveness as it is also able to consider sufficiently the impacts of non-structural measures. Furthermore, case study results indicate that transaction costs could play an important role, especially with non-structural measures associated with land-use changes. This could explain why currently these kinds of measures are rarely selected by decision makers. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2012

Suggested Citation

  • Volker Meyer & Sally Priest & Christian Kuhlicke, 2012. "Economic evaluation of structural and non-structural flood risk management measures: examples from the Mulde River," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 62(2), pages 301-324, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:spr:nathaz:v:62:y:2012:i:2:p:301-324
    DOI: 10.1007/s11069-011-9997-z
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    7. Gawel, Erik & Lehmann, Paul & Strunz, Sebastian & Heuson, Clemens, 2016. "A public choice framework for climate adaptation: Barriers to efficient adaptation and lessons learned from German flood disasters," UFZ Discussion Papers 3/2016, Helmholtz Centre for Environmental Research (UFZ), Division of Social Sciences (ÖKUS).
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    12. Paola Nanni & David J. Peres & Rosaria E. Musumeci & Antonino Cancelliere, 2021. "Worry about Climate Change and Urban Flooding Risk Preparedness in Southern Italy: A Survey in the Simeto River Valley (Sicily, Italy)," Resources, MDPI, vol. 10(3), pages 1-26, March.
    13. David Ocio & Christian Stocker & Ángel Eraso & Arantza Martínez & José Galdeano, 2016. "Towards a reliable and cost-efficient flood risk management: the case of the Basque Country (Spain)," Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, Springer;International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, vol. 81(1), pages 617-639, March.
    14. Daniel Osberghaus, 2017. "Prospect theory, mitigation and adaptation to climate change," Journal of Risk Research, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 20(7), pages 909-930, July.
    15. Ambika Markanday & Ibon Galarraga & Anil Markandya, 2019. "A Critical Review Of Cost-Benefit Analysis For Climate Change Adaptation In Cities," Climate Change Economics (CCE), World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd., vol. 10(04), pages 1-31, November.
    16. Muditha Karunarathna & Wasantha Athukorala, 2018. "The Determinants Of Investment On Floods Mitigation Activities: An Empirical Investigation In Sri Lanka," Journal of Smart Economic Growth, , vol. 3(3), pages 37-59, December.
    17. Gawel, Erik & Lehmann, Paul & Strunz, Sebastian & Heuson, Clemens, 2018. "Public Choice barriers to efficient climate adaptation – theoretical insights and lessons learned from German flood disasters," Journal of Institutional Economics, Cambridge University Press, vol. 14(3), pages 473-499, June.

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