Government funds research to tackle extreme weather

The government has unveiled a UK-wide network focused on understanding the impact of extreme weather conditions across the country.

Backed by £40m of funding, the Floods & Droughts Research Infrastructure, led by the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology, aims to pinpoint where incidents are likely to occur and limit their impact.

The researchers plan to use sensors and real-time computer monitoring, plus river profile data and near-real-time monitoring of information such as atmospherics, ground saturation, water movement, abstraction and storage. Bringing these information sources together will, according to the Department of Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), offer a clearer impression of where and when extreme weather will strike.

The funding builds on wider UK Research and Innovation projects tackling extreme weather in the UK and abroad, including support for businesses to ensure against its risks. It includes a project sponsored by the NERC linking the frequency and intensity of storms over Northern Europe using mathematical models that enable more accurate pricing of storm-related risks.

Another project from a team of researchers at Bristol University has resulted in the development of high-resolution flood prediction models.

The measures build on £5.6bn of government investment into flooding from 2021 and 2027.

Louise Heathwaite, executive chair of NERC, said that climate change is leading to more extreme floods and droughts in the UK, which impacts homes, businesses and services. “Predicting their location and measuring their intensity and impact needs the sort of scientific advances that this programme will bring to overcome the data and analytical constraints that are currently very challenging,” she said.

Among the ways the Floods & Droughts Research Infrastructure could be used is in helping local authorities and the Environment Agency to stem the worst of extreme weather’s impact on communities, saving lives, homes and businesses, and helping to cut the devastating cost of such events to the UK economy, estimated at £740m a year.

“In the case of extreme flooding and drought, preparation and prediction are everything,” said floods minister Emma Hardy. 

Commenting on the flood and drought initiative, science and technology secretary Peter Kyle said: “With climate change sadly making extreme weather events more common and adding an eye-watering cost to the economy, there is no time to waste in backing our researchers and innovators to ensure we are better prepared for floods and droughts striking.

“This project will help drive that progress, with dedicated teams using the most advanced tech to crunch data gathered from our rivers and paint a clear picture of its likely impact – using the power of science and tech to keep the public safe.”

Researchers will be based at the UK Centre for Ecology & Hydrology’s offices throughout Britain, with further input from researchers in the British Geological Survey, University of Bristol and Imperial College London.

The government also plans to launch a Flood Resilience Taskforce to turbocharge the delivery of new flood defences, drainage systems and natural flood management schemes.