Complex flood-control strategy on the Upper-Tisza catchment area

The more frequent appearance of extreme weather events and the unpredictable negative effects of climate change indicate difficult challenges for either water management experts or authorities and decision makers to tackle considering the several effects of flood. As river flows and water systems do not know borders, the Upper-Tisa Basin must be handled and investigated as a complex unit, which means that effective flood prevention requires cross-border cooperation, common thinking, and harmonized activities. However, the inspection of dikes and floodplains are actual tasks of local water management directorates and authorities, each country uses its own methodology and the used traditional on-field investigations do not produce adequate information. Furthermore, novel remote sensing, geophysical and soil mechanics methods are available that can produce more accurate results with higher resource efficiency. As the basin has cross border characteristics, its management and flood prevention activities must be fulfilled in a common way, which indicates the development of a harmonized methodology that is based on novel methods and implements national best practices as well. National strategies are formed that consider local characteristics but handles the basin as a common, complex system. DIKEINSPECT, focuses on the development of a harmonized methodology that can be implemented and used in all 4 ENI countries. It will be implemented with 6 partners from the 4 country. By using this methodology, critical dike sections and flood plain areas will be identified, action plans for further developments and strategies for decision makers will be formed. The results of the project will be shared on 4 trans-boundary meeting, 1 informational forum and professional trainings in every country to introduce to water management professionals how to use the most innovative techniques and to present the importance of flood prevention to the public.