Evidence of increasingly severe river floods in recent decades has spurred unprecedented efforts in Germany, Europe and many other regions of the world to reduce these threats through flood control measures. While there is general agreement that flood management should first of all be pursued by strengthening natural water retention, such efforts allow limited improvements for urbanized floodplains. Their execution often collides with other land-use concerns and requires long-range planning. Communities are therefore increasingly asking for protective structures to be built immediately along the endangered areas. River flood control techniques have been greatly improved in recent years, but such measures are usually extensive and structurally invasive. They may compromise urban design and landscape qualities, historic monuments and sites, and tourist appeal, and thus affect the quality of life and the overall value of a location. This aspect has not been sufficiently taken into consideration so far, and it is rarely considered adequately and early enough in planning such projects.
Evidence of increasingly severe river floods in recent decades has spurred unprecedented efforts in Germany, Europe and many other regions of the world to reduce these threats through flood control measures. While there is general agreement that flood management should first of all be pursued by strengthening natural water retention, such efforts allow limited improvements for urbanized floodplains. Their execution often collides with other land-use concerns and requires long-range planning. Communities are therefore increasingly asking for protective structures to be built immediately along the endangered areas. River flood control techniques have been greatly improved in recent years, but such measures are usually extensive and structurally invasive. They may compromise urban design and landscape qualities, historic monuments and sites, and tourist appeal, and thus affect the quality of life and the overall value of a location. This aspect has not been sufficiently taken into consideration so far, and it is rarely considered adequately and early enough in planning such projects.
This international colloquium will address basic parameters and experiences from different geographic, political, economic and cultural contexts; promising approaches and strategies for the preservation of urban and cultural landscapes along rivers and streams and for building environmentally-sound protection systems will be discussed. The following topics and questions are of special interest:
- GOALS & CONFLICTS: General and specific problems of flood control in sensitive urban areas and cultural landscapes
- Flood protection as endangerment – a paradox?
- Risks for specific protected objects and heritage categories
- Flood control and townscape
- Flood protection and functions of urban space
- Flood protection and the art of building
- Potentials of flood protection for cities and landscapes on rivers and
- APPROACHES: Strategies, processes, methods
- Hydraulic construction and flood protection – a matter for experts only?
- Legal provisions for the integration of flood protection into environmental planning
- Procedures and integration of flood protection with other environmentally relevant issues and plans
- Communication and visualization of flood control projects, mediation and stakeholder participation
- SOLUTIONS: Technological and structural examples
- Temporary or permanent, unobtrusive vs. dominant interventions by flood control measures
- Structural retrofitting of existing buildings for flood resistance
- Integration of flood protection structures into the urban environment
- Typologies, forms and surfaces of flood protection structures
- Appropriateness of flood control structures and legibility of their protective function
The colloquium is intended to bring together scientists and planners from hydraulic engineering, heritage conservation, architecture, urban design and landscape architecture. Conference languages are English and German. Papers presented will be published in the conference proceedings.
Scientific Committee and Organization:
Prof. Thomas Will, Dr. Heiko Lieske Institute for Architectural History, Theory and Conservation, Faculty of Architecture Technische Universität (TU) Dresden Gabi Böhme, Susan Rose, secretariat
Scientific Advisory Board:
Dr. Dirk Carstensen, Institut für Wasserbau und Technische Hydromechanik, TU Dresden Dr. Hagen Eyink, Prof., Bundesministerium für Verkehr, Bau und Stadtentwicklung, Berlin Dr. Bernhard Furrer, Prof., Accademia di Architettura, Universita della Svizzera Italiana, Mendrisio, CH
Ulrich Kraus, Sächsisches Staatsministerium für Umwelt und Landwirtschaft, Dresden (inv.) Dr. Hans-Rudolf Meier, Prof. of Conservation and Building History, Bauhaus-Universität Weimar Dennis S. Mileti, Director Emeritus, Natural Hazards Center, University of Colorado, Boulder, USA (inv.) Edmund Penning-Rowsell, PhD, Professor of Geography, Flood Hazard Research Centre, Middlesex University, London Dr. Erika Schmidt, Sen.-Professorin für Geschichte der Landschaftsarchitektur, TU Dresden Joachim Tourbier, Professor emeritus for Landscape Construction, Philadelphia, USA Pali Wijeratne, Environmental Planning Services (Pvt) Ltd., Colombo, Sri Lanka
Abstract submission:
MS Word or Adobe PDF formatted Abstracts should be submitted in English or German (preferably English and German) and should not exceed 400 words. Brief information on the author, professional/institutional affiliation, and field of expertise should also be provided. Please send abstracts no later than September 17, 2012 to: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Authors selected to present papers will be informed by October 12, 2012; papers will be due by the end of this year. Speakers have free admittance to the colloquium. Coverage of travel expenses is subject to funding by Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft.
Further information will be provided here: http://flood?heritage?2013.arch.tu?dresden.de/