Natural Flood Risk Management and its Role in Working with Natural Processes

This chapter considers the emerging research field of 'Natural Flood Risk Management' (NFRM), and the importance of developing and collating the existing evidence to meet national and international policy agendas in adapting to the impacts of climate change by working with natural processes. The majority of research into NFRM has emerged in the past decade across England, Wales, Scotland and continental Europe. NFRM works with natural processes to alleviate current and future flood risk. NFRM can be broadly aligned into three categories within both restoration and alteration, including: upland afforestation, upland drainage alteration, and wetlands and floodplain alteration. Methods and approaches, such as hard engineering, that have either identified or analysed the role of NFRM have used one or more of four elements: mapping, modelling and to a lesser extent monitoring and engagement. The chapter considers theses approaches in the study of NFRM and their contribution to a better understanding of their benefits.