FloodJustice launched: Research on justice in flood risk management
Flood events increasingly pose major challenges for regions – not only from a technical perspective, but also from a societal one. The collaborative research project FloodJustice addresses this issue by analysing how flood risks, protection measures, and the associated burdens and benefits are distributed. The study area is the Rur river basin, home to more than 1.1 million inhabitants.
The project focuses on different dimensions of inequality, including spatial disparities between upstream and downstream areas, distributional issues between municipalities that provide land for flood protection measures and those that benefit from them, as well as social inequalities between different population groups. Based on comprehensive analyses, a scientifically grounded “justice check” is being developed to systematically identify, assess and integrate such inequalities into decision-making processes.
A key element of FloodJustice is close collaboration with regional practice partners. Together, compensation mechanisms and measures for a fairer distribution of burdens and benefits in flood risk management are being developed and tested in selected pilot areas. In doing so, the project makes an important contribution to socially just, acceptable and implementable climate adaptation at the regional level.
FloodJustice is a collaborative project involving the research group of Regional Development and Risk Management (TU Dortmund University), the Institute of Hydraulic Engineering and Water Resources Management (RWTH Aachen University), the StädteRegion Aachen (SRA), and the Eifel-Rur Water Board (WVER). The project is co-financed under the ERDF/JTF Programme NRW 2021–2027 by the European Union and the Ministry of the Environment, Nature and Transport of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia.