Risky places in the Netherlands: a first approximation for floods

Flood risk maps are considered useful tools for flood risk management including spatial planning. In the Netherlands, flood risk is usually assessed for large geographical units: at the dike-ring scale. However, within dike rings differences in flood risk are large. Maps that provide information on flood risks and on aspects of flood risks on a more detailed spatial scale are relevant for prioritising flood control measures or land-use planning. The research reported in this paper, therefore, aims at mapping flood risks on a more detailed scale. This paper focuses on the identification of risky places in the Netherlands, i.e. places where many fatalities may be expected due to flooding, because they are both hazardous and vulnerable. The method distinguishes factors that determine the likelihood and number of fatalities into hazard factors and vulnerability and exposure factors. The places that have the highest risk level are the risky places.