Frisco - vrste protipoplavnih ukrepovControlling or reducing flood risk is carried out by implementing so-called flood protection measures, which are roughly divided into non-structural and structural flood protection measures.

Non-structural measures include, for example, forecasting of floods; structural measures include, for example, the construction of high-water embankments or high-water containers. Flood protection measures are being implemented by various competent institutions, most of them public sector bodies (state administration bodies, local communities, etc.). In Slovenia, the Ministry of the Environment and Spatial Planning, the Slovenian Environmental Agency, the Slovenian Water Agency and the Administration of the Republic of Slovenia for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief are responsible for implementing most of the flood protection measures at the state level. In Croatia, Hrvatske vode, the Croatian Meteorological and Hydrological Service and the National Protection and Rescue Directorate are responsible for implementing most of the flood protection measures.

In Slovenia, a set (or catalogue) of 20 types of flood protection measures was prepared a few years ago which reduce flood risks and prevent the emergence of new or additional flood risks:

TABLE: Set of 20 types of flood protection measures (Slovenia).

Measure
U1 Determination and consideration of flood areas
U2 Identification, establishment and preservation of overflow surfaces of high waters
U3 Adaptation of land use in river basins
U4 Implementation of hydrological and meteorological monitoring
U5 Establishment and management of flood risk data
U6 Educating and raising awareness about flood risks
U7 Planning and construction of structural flood protection measures
U8 Implementation of individual (self-protection) flood protection measures
U9 Regular verification of the effectiveness of existing (structural) flood protection arrangements
U10 Regular maintenance of watercourses, water facilities and aquatic and coastal land
U11 Implementation of river control
U12 Flood protection management of water facilities
U13 Provision of financial resources for implementing the public utility service of water management
U14 Preparation of flood protection and rescue plans
U15 Prediction of floods
U16 Flood warning
U17 Intervention action during floods
U18 Assessment of damage and implementation of post-flood rehabilitation
U19 Documentation and analysis of flood events
U20 Systemic, normative, financial and other measures

Individual flood protection measures have very different effects. Regarding the effects of flood protection measures, structural flood protection measures are most effective, but they can, however, have the greatest impact on the environment (positive for human health and sometimes a little less positive for nature).

We can combine or include 20 types of flood protection measures in 5 steps of the entire flood risk management cycle, namely:

  • prevention – activities to reduce flood risks and promote appropriate land use, agricultural land management and forest management;
  • protection – activities to reduce the probability of flooding or to reduce the impact of floods at a particular location and to increase resilience to floods;
  • awareness – informing local residents of flood risk and taking appropriate action in the event of an emergency;
  • preparedness – activities undertaken in the event of an emergency; and
  • restoration – fast restoration of the situation before the flood event, implementation of the analysis and consideration of new findings.