Flood Propagation Model in Urban Areas: Application to the City of Bahía Blanca

Abstract

In recent years, floods related to extreme precipitation events have been experienced as a consequence of climate change. Urban planning is therefore an essential tool for managing the growth of cities, guaranteeing a balanced development between the environment, infrastructure and the quality of life of citizens, taking into consideration the reduction of the risk of these natural disasters. Thus, the aim of this work is the definition of a flood hazard map for urban areas based on a flood model. The model is applied in the city of Bahía Blanca in the southwest of the Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina. In order to validate the model, information provided by citizens, experts and in situ measurements are used. According to the results of the model, 60% of the surface of the city was under more than half a metre of water, while the remaining 40% did not exceed this value. From the validations, the model with respect to the data obtained gave good fits, having a good confidence between what was predicted by the model and what happened on the ground. The hazard map obtained from the model identified that the areas of greatest impact of the event were in the vicinity of the Napostá Grande stream and the Maldonado canal and the lowlying areas located in the SW and SE sector of the city. These findings provide a tool for planning social, environmental and economic policies.