The EU directive on the assessment and management of flood risks (2007/60/EC), which requires Member States to map risks and draw up risk management plans, is “a very important prevention tool”, but it has limitations that Greece experienced in September during intense flooding in Thessaly (cyclone Daniel, then torrential rain on already flooded land). Greece underlined this point during ‘any other business’ at the EU Environment Council on Monday 16 October.
According to the Greek minister, the reason for this is that risk modelling is no longer adapted to “the climate, which has changed dramatically in Greece”. He added: “Risk mapping is all very well, but looking back won’t help us manage the situation”.
He explained that the assumptions of the model used for the official flood risk maps did not take into account rainfall intensity over a short period of time, the spatial distribution of the rainfall, the effect of the large volume of sediment and debris transported, which played a major role in the development of the flood, or the actual state of maintenance of the flood defence infrastructure and the irrigation and drainage network.
The Greek minister called for a more dynamic approach to help the relevant authorities deal more effectively with extreme weather events.
The Cypriot delegation supported the Greek intervention, believing that the limits of this directive should be examined in order to increase the authorities’ room for manoeuvre and provide for additional preventive actions, “including collaborative actions with other States through operational centres that could be supported by the European Commission”.
France said the floods were “a stark reminder of the need to accelerate mitigation policies and strengthen joint action on adaptation”.
See the Greek information note: https://aeur.eu/f/92z (Original version in French by Aminata Niang)