Risk assessment boost as data flows from river map

18 June 2008
 
The accuracy of the Environment Agency’s flood-risk maps will be improved following the completion of a project to digitise England and Wales’ rivers.

The ‘detailed river network’, which includes the accurate mapping of the alignment of more than 300,000km of rivers and 26,000 off-line drainage watercourses, such as ditches, provides data not available through the Ordnance Survey’s OS Mastermap.

James Winbolt, head of business development in the EA’s information enterprise centre, said the information, available to local authorities, would help improve flood risk management. Previously, he said, flood risk assessments might have been hindered by a lack of detailed information on the alignment of rivers, particularly for sections where they were culverted, or where they had changed over time.

‘Historic data on rivers collected by the Ordnance Survey was often unsatisfactory, with a symbol sometimes representing “We don’t know where the river goes, but it seems to drain”.

‘Our staff, and those in local government, will now have a better understanding of where water will end up, should there be an extreme event,’ said Winbolt, as there would also be a layer of data on flows, collected by the EA. The detailed river network was launched at a meeting of the Atlantis Initiative to improve the sharing of data among organisations tackling flood risk.

Also on the agenda was the availability of the Ordnance Survey topographical data, critical for flood planning. David Henderson, senior OS product manager, acknowledged a need for more detailed topographical data, particularly in urban areas. • For more information on the detailed river network. @: alex.coley @environment-agency.gov.uk

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