From umbrellas to sandbags—An integration of flood risk management, engineering and social insights

In this chapter, the authors explore the changing nature of flood risk management (FRM) from the early years of intensive and short-term drainage practices, to the current more integrated approach, aiming to build long-term resilience into the system. Emergent technologies and their varying scales of application are discussed, from local level property level flood resistance (PLFR) and insurance mechanisms such as Flood Re. (with the purpose of reducing the impacts to the individual home or business); to catchment based flood management (CBFM) schemes including natural flood risk management (NFRM) and community resilience, aiming to take a more holistic and risk-based approach to managing flooding at the catchment scale. The chapter concludes considering the methods in which we may strive for an ever increasing integration of sectors and strategies in order to reduce the ever-worsening impacts of flooding.