Let us share some impressions of the launch conference:
On June 4th, 2024, European experts of flood management met to launch the 4-years cooperation FlashFloodBreaker". Hosted by the Belgium project partner Public Service of Wallonia in close cooperation with the German waterboard Emschergenossenschaft, the conference highlighted the FlashFloodBreaker approach. Strongly affected by the July 2021 flooding disaster, the Walloon region has been chosen for this event to learn from on-going flood recovery process. About 100 participants from Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, France, Ireland and Luxembourg discussed the territorial approaches of flood risk management. Florence Bariseau, vice-president of the council of the Région Hauts-de-France, gave an impressive insight about what happened after the recent flood disaster in her region.
Graphic recording
A big thank you goes to JUST JULIE and BEELD IN WERKING doing the graphic recording of the event. Explore here the main issues of the given key notes:
Panel discussion
"How to become more resilient to extreme flash flood events in North-West Europe?" This question has been discussed deeply by experts such as (from left to right) Claude Meisch/Administration de la gestion de l´eau du Luxembourg, Guido Schipper/safety region North Holland, Georg Johann/German flood competence center, Prof. Jacques Teller/University of Liège, Shane McMonagle/Donegal County Council and Oliver Hauner/association of German insurance industry. Colin Glesner from the host Service public de Wallonie did a great job to moderate the exchange.
Explore here the main statements being made during the panel discussion:
Site visit for practical insight
An excursion to the Vesdre valley, a site strongly
devastated by the floods in July 2021, showcased the recovery process on the practical
side. The subsequent visit to the “Barrage de la Gileppe” at Jalhay, one of
the four major reservoirs in Wallonia, gave a great view to the dam, playing an
essential role in flood regulation on the Vesdre.
The next day, 5th June 2024, was dedicated to
project work, which brings the partners together now until 2028. By project
end, organisations responsible for flood management and residents in 7
risk-affected areas (DE/Emscher-Lippe area, NL/Limburg and North-Holland,
BE/Wallonia and Flanders, Ireland, FR/Moselle) will be empowered to assess
their vulnerability, to strengthen their resilience and to collectively and
individually reduce the hazards and better act in case of extreme flash floods.
See on the top picture speakers of the conference meeting the partner representatives from Emschergenossenschaft (DE), Provincie Limburg (NL), Hoogheemraadschap Hollands
Noorderkwartier (NL), Service Départemental d’Incendie et de
Secours de la Moselle (FR), Université de Liège (BE), Stichting Toegepast Onderzoek Waterbeheer (NL), RWTH Aachen University Institut für Wasserbau und Wasserwirtschaft (DE); Lippeverband (DE), Vlaamse Milieumaatschappij (BE), Service public de Wallonie (BE), Université du Luxembourg (LU), Stadt Duisburg - Feuerwehr Duisburg (DE), Munster Technological University
(IE).