University of Southampton to help launch flood research centre

Rivers throughout Berkshire burst their banks after heavy rainfall

Scientists have been given millions of pounds to launch a research centre to fight climate change.

The University of Southampton is helping to launch the £6.5m FLOOD Centre, which will work to better understand and manage flooding.

The hub will include experts from the universities of Bristol, Loughborough and Newcastle, as well as organisations from from across the UK flood sector.

It comes after intense flooding across the UK this winter.

Professor Ivan Haigh from the University of Southampton will be leading the project

Professor Ivan Haigh from the University of Southampton will be leading the project.

He said the centre would be focussed on bringing together a talent pool of environmental experts invested in protecting against rising river, rainfall and sea levels.

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Professor Haigh said: "We get a lot of flooding in the UK, but we're just seeing it every year getting worse.

"Sea levels are rising, at the same time with the warmer climate there's more rainfall, all of that driven by climate change.

"There's more people, there's more property, more infrastructure in the flood plain than ever before. We're also seeing a decline in the extent of natural habitats that act as a buffer to flooding - at exactly the same time that our defences are starting to age.

"All of this is compounded by the fact there is a skills shortage in the flood sector, so our centre is basically a response to this perfect storm."

He said the next decade would be "absolutely crucial" and the hope is the centre will help people across the UK to become "more resilient" to flooding.

Dr Jennifer Brown said the centre would be a great opportunity for scientists to focus on the impact of flooding

The centre will involve 37 partner organisations, including experts from the National Oceanography Centre, UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology and British Geological Survey.

There will also be research places for 56 PhD students to work over the course of eight years.

Dr Jennifer Brown, from the National Oceanography Centre, said the hope is the students will all be in position to start in October.

She said: "This is a great opportunity to focus science research directly around the challenges faced by those managing and responding to flooding."

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